What Is Medication Management?
According to the Royal College of Nursing, Medication management is defined by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as: “The clinical, cost-effective and safe use of medicines to ensure patients get the maximum benefit from the medicines they need, while at the same time minimising potential harm.”
Ultimately, effective medication management is to “optimise the benefits that treatment offers and attain the best outcome for each patient.”
At Helping Hands, we have been demonstrating safe and effective medication management since we were founded over 30 years ago. We always ensure that we work as part of a cohesive team for your benefit, whether that be with your GP, community nurse or other healthcare professionals. This ensures that we can effectively deliver the medication management plan that may have been put into place by one of these professionals, and make sure it transfers effortlessly into your support plan and package of care.
Our care always focuses on the individual and ensuring that your independence is promoted as much as possible, to the extent that you want it to be. We are able to supervise every aspect of your medication administration and management, ensuring that you take the medications you are supposed to, at the frequency specified by your community healthcare specialist. Our carers are carefully trained on safe medication management to ensure that they record your medicines properly and know what to do in the event of an unanticipated error, keeping you safeguarded at all times and in the very best hands every day.
Who Is Medication Management For?
Medication management is for anyone who is taking medication under the supervision of a healthcare professional, so that their progress can be observed and planned therapeutic benefits take place. This could be a short course of antibiotics to clear an infection, or a longer-term medication used to manage the symptoms of a chronic disease. Our carers can ensure that your medication is managed properly, whether you need us to undertake every aspect of the process or just support you to take it independently.
How Can Medication Management benefit older people?
Medication management is highly beneficial for older people, as the likelihood of unintended errors can become higher the older we become. This is because as we age, our information processing skills can become less efficient, and we may not retain information as well, or carry out directions as flawlessly as we once did. This is especially the case if the person is living with dementia or another disease which impairs cognitive function. If you are concerned that you are forgetting to take your medication regularly or you observe that a loved one is not coping with managing their own medication, we can help.
Medication Management from Helping Hands
Whether you choose to receive visiting care from 30 minutes per week, or you have live-in care around the clock, all Helping Hands carers are carefully trained in medication management to ensure that they will always be able to administer and record your medication with the highest levels of efficiency and professionalism. We understand how vitally important it is to get medication management right – after all, your life could depend on it – so you can always be sure that our carers and managers consider it the highest priority when ensuring a carer is ready to visit their customer for the first time.
Our medication training is detailed and carefully assessed to ensure that all of our carers are confident in managing their customers’ medication, including the reporting procedure and safeguarding processes in the unlikely event that a customer takes too much medication. Your personalised support plan will detail every aspect of the medications you take and how they are to be administered, along with relevant risk assessments for those medications that require it.
Talk to our friendly customer care team any day of the week to discover how our amazing private carers could be making the difference to your, or your loved one’s life in the home you love.
Page reviewed by Carole Kerton-Church, Regional Clinical Lead on November 8, 2021