In a heartbeat, this scenario could turn deadly. About 60,000 (roughly 160 a day) children wound up in the emergency room in 2013 for ingesting medicines they found in situations not unlike the one described above. A review of poison control data by Safe Kids Worldwide finds that in 2013, 1,100 calls were placed every day that concerned a child getting into medication, or being given too much medicine.
The two biggest at-risk groups are children ages 1-4 and teens between the ages of 15 and 19. Children find medication in all different places including purses, pill counters, diaper bags, easy to reach medicine cabinets, and even on the ground.
There are a number of reasons why these numbers seem so high. According to Safe Kids Worldwide:
- The number of medications in U.S. households has increased. In 1980, there were 1.4 billion prescriptions filled in pharmacies in this country, but more than 4 billion were filled in 2014. In fact, 59% of American adults take at least one prescription medication.
- The number of multigenerational households has increased. The number of children living in a household where a grandparent was the head of the household has more than doubled between 1980 and 2014. Many older adults store their medications out in the open so they remember to take them, and keep them in bottles and pill counters without child resistant caps. The emergency room data that Safe Kids Worldwide gathered found that 48% of the overdose cases involved a medication belonging to a grandparent.
- Put all medicines up high and out of sight (this includes over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, and medicated creams). Make it as difficult as possible for your child to access any drug in the house.
- Make sure the grandparents are fully aware of how easy it is for your children to find their meds. Develop an action plan for them to implement before a visit: they survey all the drugs in the home and put them up high and out of sight, but be sure they create visible reminders for themselves so they don't miss a dose of an important medication. And when they visit your home, make sure any medications they may have with them also go up high and out of sight, but again, be certain they have a way to remember to take their pills.
- Make sure your child's caregiver understands how much of a medicine to give to your child. Don't rely on the instructions on the bottle. Write out the instructions so they know when, and how much, to give.
- Keep the Poison Control number within easy reach- 1-800-222-1222.
- Talk to your kids about medication safety. This is an especially important conversation to have with your teenager, since they are the second largest at-risk group. Teach them how to read labels and that they should never take medication prescribed to someone else (and be sure you're modeling good behavior!).
