Following is an outline of how to plan your MedSkills© Program.

Start by asking yourself:

"How regularly do I take my medication(s)?" 0 =don’t take at all  5= about half the time  10 = never miss a dose

"Which dose do I miss most often?"  Morning, Mid Day, Supper-time, Bed time

"What are the most convenient times to take my medication?"  Morning, Mid Day, Supper-time, Bed time

"Have I asked my doctor if I may switch to dose times that are most convenient for me?" Yes, Not Yet, No

Now you are ready to plan your personalized MedSkills Program:

1. Prepare a Medication Chart at home with the actual medication bottles.
   
   
   1. Plan how medications are taken throughout the day.
   2. Consider how doses might be combined (e. g, instead of taking some before meals and some with meals, combine to take all medications before immediately eating)
   3. Record notes if you intentionally skip doses to avoid side effects.
   4. Think about times when you are likely to forget doses (such as when going out for the evening) and whether extra doses are taken later to make up for skipped doses.
   5. Review recent refill dates, comparing the dates to the number of tablets dispensed. Calculate whether the number of days between refills is longer than expected based on the dose prescribed.
   
    
2. Develop dose reminder cues based on your lifestyle.
   Think about which routine activity might be useful as a reminder to take medication. If medication is taken more than once daily, separate reminder cues usually are needed for each dose time. Examples are:
   
   
   1. Specific times of day (e.g., 6-7 am and 6-7 pm)
   2. Mealtimes (usually breakfast or supper)
   3. Other daily activity (e.g., morning/evening news, walking the dog, fixing hair, checking the mail, etc)
   
    
3. Select a medication organizer system that will be useful for remembering doses.
   
   
   1. Select a 7-day box organizer
   2. Select a reminder clock with buzzer
   3. Select a timer that counts the hours since the last dose was taken
   4. Select a medication dose calendar or diary to record doses (and symptoms or adverse effects) (e.g. record dose and blood pressure or weight)
   5. Find a box large enough to hold all your pharmacy bottles and original containers together. Refill your medication organizer from the original containers in this box, or take doses from each container at dose times.
   
    
4. Keep the medication record and refill list up-to-date
   
   
   1. Make changes whenever the doctor changes the prescription for a medication.
   2. Use the medication record as a guide when filling any 7-day medication box organizer
   3. Watch the medication organizer and refill list as indicators of missed doses.
   4. Try to develop new reminder dues to improve daily dosing
   
    
5. Have a catch-up plan
   When you have discovered that you missed some doses of your medicine, have a plan in place. Develop it with your doctor as part of you Seizure Preparedness plan. Often, you can take all of the missed medicine when you remember, or sometimes half a dose as make-up: it depends upon the medication and your particular situation. Plan ahead so you know what to do when it happens.

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Section Editor: Robert Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., author: Joyce Cramer
Last Reviewed: 11/15/08