- Image by goosmurf via Flickr
With all of the appointments, meetings and everything else to remember throughout the day, sometimes take medication falls by the wayside. A missed antibiotic here, a skipped vitamin there may not seem like a big problem at the time but for some medications timing is extremely important. Luckily, with all the technology available today almost everyone has some way to remind themselves when it’s time to take their medicine.
Cell phones have become a staple of everyday life; most people will not leave the house without them. Because these devices are in almost constant contact with their owners, they serve as prime tools for helping manage a patient’s health.
Take Ann as an example. Ann has Parkinson’s and needs to take her medicine four times a day. It is very important, but relatively new to her, as she spent the first fifty years of her life extremely healthy. In order to help her remember when to take her pills, Ann activated the alarm on her phone to go off every day when it comes time to take her pills. This way, she knows when to take her medication no matter where she is, and it never slips her mind.
Cell phones are not always a good option for everyone, though, especially if someone works in an office. Another option is to use the computer to remind yourself what time to take your medicines. Many who work in an office sit near or at a computer for the majority of their time at work. Writing a desktop post-it might be enough to trigger your memory and remind you that it is time to take your medicine. Another option is sending a reminder email to whatever account is the most accessible at work. Multiple programs will set up daily reminder emails, sending them to a specified account at whatever time is chosen. These programs come in handy as a memory aid to help keep patients and their medicine on track.
