When your doctor prescribes a medicine or when you ask about an OTC medicine for your child, be sure to tell your doctor these things:
- Other medicines that your child is taking (both prescription and OTC medicines)
- Any drug allergies your child has
- If the medicine costs too much for you to buy
What can I expect from my pharmacist?
The pharmacist should tell you the same things about the medicine that your doctor told you. For liquid medicines, the pharmacist should give you a measuring device and show you the right way to use it. The pharmacist should answer any questions you have about the medicine.
What should I do if my child won't take medicine?
There are many things you can do to make medicine taste better to your child. Put liquid medicines in the refrigerator before giving them to your child. If your child will not take a medicine because of the taste, it may be okay to mix the medicine with a small amount of liquid (like juice) or soft food (like pudding). Ask your doctor or pharmacist about your child's medicine to see if this is okay. Some pharmacies have flavorings they can mix with liquids before you take them home.
You should also explain to your child how medicine can help them stay healthy or make them feel better.
Things to remember about giving medicine to your child:
- When the label on the medicine says "every 6 hours," that generally means the medicine is taken 4 times a day (for example, at breakfast, lunch, supper and bedtime). It doesn't generally mean to wake the child up in the night to take medicine. And "take every 8 hours" generally means the medicine should be taken 3 times a day.
- When you get a new prescription, ask your doctor or your pharmacist for a medicine information sheet. It will tell you about the medicine.
- If more than one family member goes to the same doctor, make sure each medicine label clearly says whose medicine it is. Ask your doctor to make sure the child's name is clear on the medicine label.
- Ask your doctor to include on the prescription label what the medicine is for. This helps the pharmacist double-check the prescription.
- Sometimes people think, "If a little medicine is good, a lot is better (or will work quicker)." This is wrong. Giving too much medicine can be harmful. Be sure you only give the prescribed or recommended dose of each medicine.
- Even when your child begins to feel better, continue to give as much medicine as the doctor prescribed. If you are giving an OTC medicine, it is usually ok to stop when your child feels better.
- Use a special measuring device for liquid medicine to get the correct dose. An ordinary kitchen teaspoon may not hold the right amount of medicine.
- If you use a syringe-type measuring device to give liquid medicine to your child, first throw away the small cap of the syringe. Children can choke on these caps.
- If your child has a bad reaction to a medicine or is allergic to a medicine, tell your doctor right away. This is important medical information. You should also keep a record of this information at home: the name of the medicine, the dosage directions, the illness the medicine was given for and the side effects the medicine caused.
- If you or your child have any problems with a medicine, call your doctor or the pharmacist right away.
More Information
For Parents
Source
Written by familydoctor.org editorial staff.
American Academy of Family Physicians
Reviewed/Updated: 09/06
Created: 03/96