What do you do when your loved one refuses to take their medication?
It is not uncommon for seniors to refuse or forget to take their prescribed medication. Sometimes, they don’t like the taste, or how it makes them feel, or they may feel the medication is unnecessary. These situations can cause concern and frustration for loved ones and caregivers. There are a few things you can do to ensure that your loved one takes their medication.
- Organize the medications in a pill container by day and time. It may be easier to additionally organize them by meal. For instance organize the medications that need to be taken at breakfast time in the first row, the medications at lunch time in the second row, and the medications that need to be taken at dinner in the third row.
- Try to sync the renewals so that all of their prescriptions can be filled at the same pharmacy to make it less confusing for your loved one or their caregiver to refill.
- If your loved one is refusing to take his/ her medication find out why they do not want to take it. If they say that it upsets their stomach find out if the medication should be taken with or without food to prevent stomach upset. Also, find out from their doctor what the possible side effects of the medication are.
- Check with their doctor to see which medicines are necessary or if the frequency of taking the medications can be cut down.
The most important thing to remember is to listen to your loved one. Although their reasons for not taking their medicine may seem like an excuse or stubbornness, it may also be that they genuinely sense that something is wrong. The medication could be causing them to have side effects that only they can detect. Whatever the case may be take the precaution of calling the doctor to discuss the matter further and determine what would be best for your loved one.