Dr. Terry Moy-Brown
A single, tiny pill that you take to manage your diabetes or blood pressure can be deadly to a child. Prescription medications are extremely powerful, tempting to small hands, and terrifyingly easy to access when not properly stored.
According to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit that works to keep kids safe from injuries, each year more than 59,000 young children go to the ER because they got into a medication. Nearly half the time, it was a grandparents’ medication that they ingested.
If you have grandchildren visiting for the holidays, or if you care for young ones on a regular basis, then it’s critical to take steps to guard against an accidental poisoning. It is also critical to educate your guests, who may bring medications into your home. Here’s what you can do to keep kids safe:
Store medicine in its original container. Most day-of-the-week pill holders and other pill storage devices are not childproof. If it’s easy for you to get into it, it’s easy for a child to get into it.
Put medicine up high and out of sight. Keep prescriptions off nightstands and bathroom counters. Shiny, clear gelcaps and brightly colored pills are easily confused with candy. Purses and bags that contain medicines, whether they belong to you or a guest, also need to be put away. Drugs that can’t be reached can’t be accessed.
Don’t depend on childproof bottles. Some children are extremely dexterous and can open childproof caps and lids. It’s also easy to accidentally screw a lid on crookedly or to not close a bottle completely.
Safeguard atypical medications. Creams, eye drops, EpiPens and supplements may not be pills, but they can still contain active and dangerous ingredients. Medicated patches can look like tempting stickers.
Dispose of old drugs. Reduce the risk of unintended ingestion by getting rid of expired drugs and prescriptions associated with past medical issues or procedures. Find medicine take-back locations at takebackyourmeds.org.
This last precaution—getting rid of old medications—is particularly important if your grandchildren are teenagers. Today’s opioid crisis isn’t just fueled by people procuring drugs illegally. Sometimes young adults simply raid their parents’ or grandparents’ cupboards for pain medications, which are often leftover from a previous surgery. Keeping track of what you have, and safely disposing of pills that are no longer needed, prevent them from being misused.
When to call Poison Control
Carefully storing and managing prescriptions is key to keeping your family safe. If, however, you think a child has gained access to and ingested something, get help right away. Call the Poison Control Center at 1-800-222-1222. The center has data on every type of medication and staff are supervised by a toxicologist and can advise you on what to do.
If the child isn’t breathing or acting right or if there any other concerning symptoms, call 911.
Dr. Terry Moy-Brown is an emergency medicine physician at The Vancouver Clinic’s Urgent Care department. She has a special interest in public health. She is fluent in Spanish and conversant in Portuguese.
