home meds

[mpccrn]

Looking for how different units handle patient's home meds. We are horrible at returning them upon discharge. Currently, we put them in a bag with the patient's name on and put them on the countertop in a locked med room. I find them there long after the name on the bag even rings a bell and I'm looking for a better practice. Any ideas?

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

We didn't confiscate home meds when I worked in the hospital. We told the parents "we give all meds here, so you will not need to use your meds" and that was that. It would be a cold day in Hades before I handed over my home meds were I admitted to the hospital. I just wouldn't admit I had them with me. They stay in my purse at all times.

If the child took meds that the pharmacy didn't stock, they went to the Pharmacy to be checked and were then kept in our med room.

[sistrmoon, BSN, RN]

We don't even count. We just pop them into a respiratory bag with a sheet we sign and put a sticker on, and down it goes to pharmacy!

I wish we did this. It makes sense for pharmacy to keep them. I guess there was some issue of a patient claiming some of his vitamins were missing so now everything gets counted.

[sistrmoon, BSN, RN]

We didn't confiscate home meds when I worked in the hospital. We told the parents "we give all meds here, so you will not need to use your meds" and that was that. It would be a cold day in Hades before I handed over my home meds were I admitted to the hospital. I just wouldn't admit I had them with me. They stay in my purse at all times.

If the child took meds that the pharmacy didn't stock, they went to the Pharmacy to be checked and were then kept in our med room.

The problem with this is you can have patients covertly taking their own meds. We had someone with a GI bleed loading up on their own aspirin. But we can only search belongings if it's a suicide watch patient so we depend on people being honest about it.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

We didn't confiscate home meds when I worked in the hospital. We told the parents "we give all meds here, so you will not need to use your meds" and that was that. It would be a cold day in Hades before I handed over my home meds were I admitted to the hospital. I just wouldn't admit I had them with me. They stay in my purse at all times.

If the child took meds that the pharmacy didn't stock, they went to the Pharmacy to be checked and were then kept in our med room.

We have to specifically ask if they have home meds with them, and then confiscate them if no one is available to take them home. Historically, there have been situations where patients get confused and take their own meds, hence our hospital's policy.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

I wish we did this. It makes sense for pharmacy to keep them. I guess there was some issue of a patient claiming some of his vitamins were missing so now everything gets counted.

Can you suggest a less time consuming method? How about sealing them in a properly labeled bag in front of the patient and having the patient sign the seal? Got that idea from duty-free alcohol purchases in international terminals of airports!

Unless you actually count them in front of the patient, or have him sign your paper with the count, you can still run into accusations of missing meds with your unit's policy.