When it comes to some medications, where and how you store them matters, as they can quickly lose their potency if exposed to heat. Proper storage is therefore essential to keep them safe. <\/p>\n
Dr Khaleah Kirkland, a pharmacist, explains which medications require refrigeration and what to do when the power goes out.<\/p>\n
\u201cCertain drugs are highly temperature-sensitive,\u201d Dr Kirkland pointed out. \u201cIf they\u2019re not kept cool, they can degrade and lose effectiveness.<\/p>\n
These include vaccines such as COVID-19, flu, and MMR (measles, mumps and rubella), biologics like insulin and epinephrine, certain antibiotics, especially injectable types, hormone therapies used in fertility treatments, and immunoglobulins for immune disorders. <\/p>\n
The consequences of failing to refrigerate these medications can be serious. <\/p>\n
\u201cReduced potency, risk of contamination, possible adverse reactions, and complete loss of usability are all potential outcomes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
So, what can patients do during a power outage? Dr Kirkland made the following suggestions:<\/p>\n
1.\tUse a portable cooler with ice or gel packs. The gel packs can be purchased in some pharmacies or online; the portable coolers can also be purchased locally or online. <\/p>\n
2.\tStore medications in a shaded area wrapped in a towel.<\/p>\n
3.\tRely on backup power sources such as a generator or battery-powered fridge. <\/p>\n
4.\tAsk a neighbour or friend to store them temporarily.<\/p>\n
If keeping medications cool isn\u2019t possible, the advice is clear: \u201cDon\u2019t use medication if you\u2019re unsure about its safety,\u201d she said. \u201cInstead, contact your healthcare provider for alternatives or replacements.\u201d<\/p>\n
For those who have lost medication or cannot access a pharmacy, urgent care centres or emergency rooms may be able to help. Checking local pharmacies for emergency supplies and contacting patient assistance programmes or the manufacturer are also recommended steps.<\/p>\n
Dr Kirkland has one final tip: <\/p>\n
\u201cPlan ahead! If you rely on refrigerated medication, have a backup strategy ready before an emergency strikes,\u201d she advised.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When it comes to some medications, where and how you store them matters, as they can quickly lose…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":384041,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[64,63,137,490],"class_list":{"0":"post-384040","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-medication"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/384040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=384040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/384040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/384041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=384040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=384040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=384040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}