What medicine do I need for my home hospital? You might want to consider a few “over the counter” medication to have on hand for emergency. Check with your health care professional to see if these medications are right for you and your family, and what would be the appropriate dose. You could include:
Pain medication: Tylenol or Ibuprofen . If you have children check with your health care professionals as to the dose. As your child gets bigger the dose will change. Note: Aspirin should not be given to children under the age of 19 years. For more information research Reye’s syndrome on the internet.
Gastrointestinal disturbances: Pepto-Bismol tablets or liquid may be helpful in relieving upset stomach, diarrhea, nausea, heart burn. Imodium might also be helpful for diarrhea, and an antacid of your choice for heartburn. If you have very young children some electrolyte replacing fluid such as Pedialyte could prevent dehydration and its complications.
Respiratory symptoms and allergies: There are numerous products in the “over the counter” category for respiratory symptoms. Consult with your health care professional regarding something for nasal congestion, seasonal allergies, coughs, and symptoms of flu or cold. If any member of your family has asthma ask what you should have on hand for an attack.
Prescription medicines: A three months supply of any prescription medication you or a family member takes is a good idea. Rotate the medication so it does not expire.
What ever you don’t hurt anyone! These are common remedies your grandmother might have used which studies have found to be not a good idea.
Cuts & Scrapes: Hydrogen peroxide, iodine, alcohol, betadine do a great job of killing bacteria on the skin when it is not broken, but when there is a cut these toxic substances retard the healing process. They hurt because they are killing healthy tissue. A better bet is to use clean water from faucet and thoroughly rinse the wound of all debris under running water. Dry the wound and apply some antibacterial ointment such as triple antibiotic ointment. Cover with a clean dressing.
Burns: Butter, which was a popular treatment in the past can cover the wound, hold in the heat, and cause infection. A better bet is to apply cold water of compresses to get rid of the heat and stop the burning process. Wrap the burn in sterile gauze or non adhesive bandage. Keep it dry and clean.
Poisoning: If someone, most likely a child, swallows something poisonous don’t give syrup of Ipeac. Problems include excessive vomiting, further damages from the poison as it comes up the esophagus, and inadequate removal of the offending substance. A better bet is to call the national poison hotline. 1-800-222-1222. If possible it is recommended to us a land line to call. You will get the poison control center in the area code of your phone. Speed
is of the utmost importance when poison is ingested.
More information at:
www.redcross.org American Redcross
www.nlm.gov/medicineplus National Institutes of
health
www.cdc.gov/ncipc National center for Injury
Prevention and Control
www.nsc.org National Safety Council
www.cpr-savers.com First Aid supplies
https://www.lds.org/topics/pef-self-reliance?lang=eng&old=true