How do you store your inhalers/spacers???

[River Song, RN]

So tell me how you store your inhaler and spacer in your clinic!!!

I have a small locked medicine cabinet (smaller than what more people have over their sinks at home) on the wall where I put my oral meds. Then I have cabinets below the counter and above the counter as well as 4 drawer file cabinets.

Through much effort in calling clinics, I got spacers for almost all of my asthmatics (my population is PK-5th so spacers are a must!) so I'm storing the MDI and the spacer which for a couple of my little ones are spacers with a mask.

Currently, I use gallon sized storage bags with sliders on the top. I use a sharpie to write the last name in large block letters at the top of the bag and then I stand them up in rows in one of my cabinets. On the shelf I have a label in front of each row "Inhalers A-E" "Inhalers F-K" etc. to make it easier to find the inhaler you are looking for. I leave this cabinet unlocked and the outside of it is labelled "INHALERS" and my trained staff know where they are kept and my asthmatics can walk up and point to where it is as well.

Maybe this is the best I can do but I have some money left in my budget and was trying to decide if there is a better way???

I've seen what other district nurses do and they have these storage boxes with trays for their MDIs , but the tray is too small for the spacer so they have to store that separately. I've also seen on school nurse supply catalogs a wall mounted storage but it also requires spacers to be stored separately. I think it is important to keep the spacer with the MDI.

Thanks for all of your virtual help with your discussions this school year, it has made my first year bearable as I've learned FAR more here than from my department

[Jacquipals]

I have pencil cases with inhaler/epi inside along with orders and care plans. Everything in the pencil box is inside a Ziplock bag so it's ready for field trips. Names are on cases and in alphabetical order.

[NutmeggeRN, BSN]

I use the clear shoe bag and in the front have a piece of colored paper with their last name and exp. date. This blocks what is in it (privacy) but makes it easy to ID is someone needs to come and get it in an emergency. It is right across from my desk.

[JaneCass]

I have a question... when you have a fire drill, do you take the emergency meds (epi pens, inhalers, etc)

with you? If so, how do you transport them?

Thanks

Jane

[OldDude]

I don't take anything out with me for a "drill." If we have a bona fide evacuation I grab my "go" bag, which has a couple of generic albuterol inhalers and facemask spacers in it, a tube of glucose tabs, AND a generic 0.1 and 0.3 dose epipen. In a bona fide evacuation I will scoop up all the epi-pens and diastat to take with me.

To your question...I take the epi and diastat specific to the student but I don't take out the truckload of inhalers; I have albuterol in my "go" bag for anyone needing it while evacuated.

[Amethya]

I have a medicine lock cabinet, with small compartments. I just have the student's name and DOB and their medications in there. I have two keys, one on my person at all times and one hanging on my bulletin board for others to use.

[Queen of Icepacks, RN]

I have a cheap pencil bag with a zipper closure (from the dollar store) for each student with an epipen or inhaler. Each bag is about the size of 1/2 of a sheet of paper. There is enough room for epipens, inhalers and spacers. Each bag is labeled with the students name and grade. The bags are opaque so you can not see the contents. The bags are then located in a large steriite box and arranged by grade level and then alphabetically. The box goes with me along with my go bag and stop the bleed kit in case of an evacuation.

I was using hanging shoe organizers but was told that because the epipens and inhalers were visible that it was a HIPA violation. It was also not easy to transport in case of an emergency.

[AdobeRN]

I pretty much do the same. In gallon bags, labeled with names in somewhat alpha order.

[BrisketRN, BSN, RN]

I have all my meds in a larger cabinet above my desk. Inhalers/spacers are kept in two bins (dollar store type--not sure where they came from) separated alphabetically. Each inhaler with a spacer is kept in a ziplock bag labeled with their name and class. Inside the bag is a copy of their asthma action plan (mostly for field trips/outings).

[Csn2016, BSN]

I have mine stored like the attached picture but I have the organizer hanging over the inside of a closet door in my office so kids cant just come in and be touching it etc ( fyi this is not my pic stole it from pinterest) works great because we have a lot of after school programs and they may need access to the epi-pens or inhalers when I'm not here, (there is trained staff on site during these programs) this allows them to be clearly labeled and very easy to find in an emergency for someone who is not in my office on a daily basis. (I have the clear shoe organizer and have the students name on a piece of paper on the inside of each holder so it is clear to see then the epi pen/inhaler/spacer tucked behind their name)

[Hometeam]

I have two of the medium sized plastic totes with handles on the lid. I put them in labeled bags and keep them on the shelf of my med cabinet. That way in case of a fire or emergency I can just put the lid on the whole box and take it when we evacuate.