Did you know that about one in six Americans are caregivers providing care to adults (18 years and older) with a disability or illness? Some are caregivers to family members, while others are hired to be caregivers. There are many tasks that a caregiver may have to do on any given day including, but not limited to, feeding, bathing, housekeeping, transporting, and giving medicine. Below we share poison safety tips for caregivers.
Know Who to Call
When a poisoning or overdose (unintentional or intentional) happens, it’s scary! Knowing who to call in a situation is important. If a person is unconscious, having a seizure, or having trouble breathing, call 911 right away. If they are not experiencing life threatening symptoms, call the Maryland Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.
There are certain situations when you would call your health care provider or pharmacist as well! Your health care provider can help you when you have a question about the reason for taking a medicine, when to stop and start taking medicines, and anything involving routine medical care. Your pharmacist can help you when you have a question about generic alternatives for prescriptions, drug interactions between prescriptions, and any special instructions when taking medicines.
Safe Storage
One of the most important tips we have for caregivers is to exercise safe storage practices. The golden rule is up, away, and out of sight! This can be practiced for household cleaning products, personal care products, and medicines. For more information, please visit our previously published Understanding Safe Storage blog post.
Cleaning Product Safety
Cleaning products are commonly found in everyone’s home. It is very important to store and use these products safely.
In addition to keeping these products stored up, away, and out of sight, there are other storage tips to keep in mind. These products should always be stored in their original labeled containers. Never use a food or beverage container to store cleaning products. This can be easily mistaken and lead people to consume the product without knowing it’s a cleaner. We also suggest storing cleaning products away from food and beverages.
In order to use cleaning products safely, read the label first. The label contains specific directions on how to use each product. It is also important to know you should not mix cleaners together. This can cause a chemical reaction that can lead to an unpleasant and sometimes harmful smell. If you want to use two cleaners in the same area, use one product, rinse it completely away, then use the next product. Turn on a fan or open the windows if a smell becomes overwhelming.
Medicine Safety
More than 70% of cases at the Maryland Poison Center involve one or more medicines. These are both unintentional (accidental) and intentional (on purpose) cases. A ‘medicine’ covers both over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription medicines. If you take away one thing from this section, let it be that you should read the label every time you take a medicine and follow the directions exactly as stated. When used in the right way, right amount, and by the right person, medicines can work correctly to treat a medical need.
For additional tips for different age groups and information on medicine disposal, please visit our Medicine Safety Information Sheet.
As always, the Maryland Poison Center is available 24/7 and calling is free and confidential. In addition to our telephone service, we have a wide range of educational materials and resources available on our website, blog, and social media pages.
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