Stupid hospital question about meds

Check with your doctor - or the admit nurse - but here in the great Commonwealth of Virginia - you are told to bring your meds in their pharmacy package so they can note what you are taking. Then they will order your meds through the hospital pharmacy.

There are some times when they hold your "at home" meds so they can check blood work and vitals or becasue of a possible interaction with other more "important" meds. They may even change what you are taking while you are in there.

You should NEVER take any meds from home while in the hospital without permission from your doctor. He and the nursing staff need to know what you have taking and when so that if any type of problem arises, they know how to counter it.

I am on BP meds and was not given them while I was in the castle - I was told it was because the other meds they were giving me lowers the BP anyway and did not want my BP to drop too low.

ALSO: Check with your doctor about what meds you can take the day of your surgery...often they will want you to hold off on them that morning.

Here's another tip: Write down everything you take, who ordered it and their phone numbers for your DH or whoever wil be with you at home. (post it on the fridge) IF something happens, they will have that information. My DH knows I take medicine and he knows some of my medical history, but he does not retain those kind of details. I also typed up my medical history and keep a copy with me in case of an emergency.

I know that this is a scary time - but soon you will have this all behind you and feeling better than you have in years

Hang in there,


Mary Beth

Thanks again sisters and I will take them with me. I'd rather have the peace of mind and my DH will help me with them. And I sure don't want to pay $80 for one pill that I'm already taking!

Vuebird
TAH 6/4/07 God willing

Both my doctor and the nurse at my hospital pre-op appt told me to bring my meds from home. They are allergy/asthma inhalers and they had me use them before surgery. The nurses were totally awesome and even reminded the next a.m. to use them! Good luck!

I told my drs., the surgeon and even the anesthesiologist what I take for medication. I wrote everything down on index cards.

Mary Beth-Yes, I was told not to bring my medication to the hospital. But you can't just stop taking Xanax. And I had to wait almost a day for the nurse to get the okay from the dr. so I could take them. I'm glad that I had my aunt bring them up to me. Otherwise I would have had a seizure. I couldn't keep begging the nurses to bring me my pills. Some pills I could have gone without, but not the Xanax or Cymbalta or Prozac. What was I going to do? As it was I was shaking like a leaf waiting for the nurse to bring in the Xanax that first day, and it never came. The nurses were very good to me and took good care of me. But when it came time to take my regular meds at a certain time, they could have done a much better job. So please don't judge us. I was also told I could take all of my medications before surgery, and I did. And when I was at the hospital I told the anesthesiologist what I had taken. I even gave him an index card with my meds listed. I'd do it all over again if I had to.

Robin

Robin,

I was not trying judge ya'll - I just want to help the Sisters be informed. As a former health care provider - I know that some pts take meds and don't tell their doctors what they are taking. OTC and meds from other doctors need to documented as serious complications could arise. For example, many people take aspirin every day and that can cause major bleeding problems.

We all have to be advocates for our health and well being, but we must have open communication with our doctors.


Mary Beth

Mary Beth,

I understand where you are coming from. I always am very up front about every medication I take. I tell my dr. everything and don't leave anything out. Especially when it comes to taking medication. It was just a difficult situation when I kept on waiting for my medication and the nurse had to wait for the dr. to approve it. If it weren't Xanax, it would be different. But if you miss more than one dose of it, your body really feels it. I did tell my dr, though. Everything else in the hospital was fine. It was just getting my meds on time that was a problem.

Robin

Now someone did have a point of the drugs not mixing well but that's something you may have to ask about. Like I said.. Im cheap and I'm not paying a penny for a pill I already have.. haahahah. Your doctor should be able to go over with you before hand the medicine you are taking and whether there would be any interactions with the meds you should be receiving in the hospital (my assumption that would mainly just be pain meds). But.. not there yet and not on anything regularly now so I'm not sure.

	Quote:
Originally Posted by df323 Now someone did have a point of the drugs not mixing well but that's something you may have to ask about. Like I said.. Im cheap and I'm not paying a penny for a pill I already have.. haahahah. Your doctor should be able to go over with you before hand the medicine you are taking and whether there would be any interactions with the meds you should be receiving in the hospital (my assumption that would mainly just be pain meds). But.. not there yet and not on anything regularly now so I'm not sure.

When I was in the hospital the nurses would give me pain pills, mostly Oxycodone. They also gave me Tylenol. My insurance paid for all of it, plus my regular medication, once it was approved so I could take them. I was fortunate that everything was covered and it didn't cost me anything.