How to Care for Your Medicine Kit

1. CAUTION: Keep all medicines out of the reach of children. Any medicine taken in large doses can be poisonous.

2. Be sure that all medicine is well labeled and that directions for use are kept with each medicine. Keep a copy of this book with the medicine kit.

3. Keep all medicines and medical supplies together in a clean, dry, cool place free from cockroaches and rats. Protect instruments, gauze, and cotton by wrapping them in sealed plastic bags.

4. Keep an emergency supply of important medicines on hand at all times. Each time one is used/replace it as soon as possible.

5. Notice the DATE OF EXPIRATION on each medicine. If the date has passed or the medicine looks spoiled, destroy it and get new medicine.

Note: Some medicines, especially tetracyclines, may be very dangerous if they have passed their expiration date. However, penicillins in dry form (tablets or powder for syrup or injection) can be used for as long as a year after the expiration date if they have been stored in a clean, dry, and fairly cool place. Old penicillin may lose some of its strength so you may want to increase the dose. (CAUTION: While this is safe with penicillin, with other medicines it is often too dangerous to give more than the recommended dose.)

Figure