No matter how careful they try to be, medication overdoses occur alarmingly often to elderly residents. Official research indicates that this adverse effect is a result of a well-known paradox: while an aging body has a reduced biological capability to break down and exert medicine, seniors have the highest medicine consumption of all age groups. To make matters worse, elders often suffer from absent-mindedness or forgetfulness, which leads to mixing up pills, further increasing the chance of overdosing. Thus, to prevent ill-fated accidents and ease the mind of other family members, elders should opt for advanced medication dispensers (reminders), devices that ensure patients take the correct amount of medicine in a timely manner.
Med dispensers underwent huge improvements over the past few years. Forget the old plastic containers with several slots for different pills, as now the medication dispenser is an electronic device capable of housing up to a whole month’s supply of medicine. The system can be programmed to produce an audio prompt reminding the aging resident that it’s time to take the pills. Advanced models are also capable of giving further instructions or reminding the user about other, non-pill medication. It goes without saying that med dispensers play an important role in preventing over- and underdoses by ensuring promptly scheduled medication consumption for aging adults and patients with cognitive impairments. High-class devices provided by medical alert companies may also boast notification features that report missed doses, refilling, and dispense errors to the caregivers.
A device dispensing a pre-set amount of medicine in a timely fashion relieves a lot of work from the shoulders of caregivers and family members. Each unit has several small slots for the pills, which, after replenishing the stock, can be locked, preventing children or seniors from fiddling with it. The programming of these devices is usually done by the company or the medical alert team, thus you only need to submit the schedule; however, you can change the timing for reminders later on as well. Some units are fully remote and powered by batteries, while others need a power outlet, but have backup batteries in case of a power outage. In other words, you can expect your med dispenser to stay operational in every situation.
Med dispensers come in many shapes and forms: you can buy standalone models or opt for one through a medical alert company. So let us show you three ideal picks for your aging relative.
Regardless of the high quality of your med dispenser, you cannot disclose the possibility of an overdose. And no matter how advanced they are, none of the units are capable of calling for help if an accident happens. This is why you need an extra safety net: a medical alert system backed by a monitoring team that has the wearer’s medical history on file. Even better, most medical alert companies offer medication dispensers or med reminders alongside help buttons and environmental detectors, plus they can even set the dispensing schedule for you.
In short, using a medical alert system alongside a med dispenser is the best way to enjoy duple protection in one package.
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