Current Medication & Supplement Schedule

7/11/08: Several changes in Med Schedule, since it's been over a year since I updated it. I'll indicate changes and a bit of history in the Notes section.

UPON AWAKENING BEFORE BREAKFAST:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
Albuterol/Ipratropium	inhaled upon awakening before breakfast	to address lung congestion
Niferex-150 Forte [150 mg elemental iron] Rx with extra B12 and folic acid	1 tab upon awakening before breakfast	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control
Protonix/40 mg; Prilosec/20 mg	upon awakening before breakfast	standard pre-breakfast med; protects her intestinal lining to prevent ulceration and bleeding; will be switching to Prilosec (per Hospice) when the Protonix is gone
glipizide ER/10 mg	1 pill before breakfast	if her blood sugar is high enough so that it doesn't drop too low in the 45 minutes or so before she actually eats breakfast; OTHERWISE, given at meal

BREAKFAST

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
Niferex-150 Forte [150 mg elemental iron] Rx with extra B12 and folic acid	1 tab with breakfast	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control
100 mg Macrodantin	with meal	to prevent UTIs
Daily Senior Multivitamin	with breakfast	standard breakfast supplement
6 tsp Benefiber	with meal, in orange juice	promotes timely, easy bowel evacuation; may occasionally be given in lower or higher doses
1/4 tsp cinnamon	with meal, sprinkled on toast	said to increase cell sensitivity to insulin

BEFORE NAP:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
1 Niferex-150 Forte [150 mg elemental iron] Rx with extra B12 and folic acid	before nap	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control

AFTER NAP:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
Albuterol/Ipratropium	inhaled upon awakening from nap	to address lung congestion
1 Niferex-150 Forte [150 mg elemental iron] Rx with extra B12 and folic acid	upon awakening after nap	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control

DINNER:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
1 tab glipizide ER/10 mg	with meal	to control Type 2 diabetes
1 Niferex-150 Forte [150 mg elemental iron] Rx with extra B12 and folic acid	with meal	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control
1 tab calcium-vitamin D/500-200 mg	with meal	believed to be an osteoporosis preventative; although current research suggests that it does not perform well in women; I give it to her anyway because I doubt that it will hurt her and the extra Vitamin C is probably good for her

BEFORE BED AT NIGHT:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
glipizide ER/10 mg	1 pill with dessert or after a high refined carb meal	Rarely given; only in cases of lots of carbohydrates throughout the day; otherwise, see DINNER MEDS
Albuterol	inhaled just before bedtime	to address lung congestion
1 Niferex-150 [150 mg elemental iron]	just before sleep	to keep her iron deficiency anemia under control
lisinopril/15 mg	1 10mg tab + 1/2 tab more	Given to lower her blood pressure and protect her kidneys; works by relaxing the blood vessels.

OTHER TIMES:

Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
Concentrated oxygen, 4.5/lpm continuous	when sleeping	to make sure she doesn't become breathless
Tanked continuous oxygen, 3/lpm	24/7when she's sitting	to make sure she doesn't become breathless
Tanked oxygen, 4/lpm continuous	when she's moving or exercising	to make sure she doesn't become breathless

    The following are prescribed meds, treatments or supplements (all the rest are OTC supplementals which, although approved by her PCP, were not suggested by him):

• Niferex-150 Forte: 900 mg; 300 mg 3x/day (Rx)
• Protonix: 40mg 1x/day (Rx); will be switched to Omeprazole 20 mg while on Hospice
• Glipizide: 10 mg; 2-3x/day (Rx)
• Lisinopril: 15 mg 1x/day; if necessary, I can increase this dose by scattering other low mg doses throughout the day (Rx)
• Macrodantin: 100 mg 1x/day (Rx)
• Oxygen, 2-4/lpm pulse and continuous-may titrate (Rx)
• Oscal: Calcium/Vitamin D combo 1x/day (recommended by the nursing home; although research has since shown that this supplement does not alleviate the possibility of breakage or weakening bone structure, I continue it anyway, since it seems likely that it couldn't hurt

    The following are administered occasionally and/or daily, as needed:

• Opcon-A for itchy, weepy eyes
• Phillip's Milk of Magnesia to break through constipation; Tbl dose at a time
• Ducosate Sodium if a little more help is needed to break through constipation
• Extra Strength Tums for very occasional upset stomach
• Desitin and/or Level 3 Barrier Cream (used every day on thigh creases) for urine skin irritations and rashes.
• 2% diphenhydramine cream used for skin rashes due to urine irritation and/or sweat-heat rashes. I use this when the oil based zinc creams don't do the trick (which is fairly often). This cream isn't oil based and allows the skin to breathe better; it also stops itching and heals more quickly.
• Extra Strength Acetaminophen or Regular Acetaminophen for occasionally unusual aches and stiffness
• {Rx} Furosemide 10 mg once to twice a day for very occasional water retention; when I give this to her I note it in these daily reports.
• {Rx} Metoclopramide 5 mg administered 1/2 hour before meal in the case of very occasional nausea. When I give this to her I note it in these daily reports.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:  You may notice that some of her previous supplements have disappeared from the schedule. I am no longer adamant about making sure, for instance, that she receives a cup of Detox tea a day as, during her stay in the hospital and facility when she didn't drink this it became apparent that it had no effect. I still make her a cup a couple times a week for her after breakfast tea but I vary it with one of the variety of teas we have on hand. She usually receives a cup of tea before bed, as well. Usually it's Ginger tea, as, when I used this a while back to help allay nausea she really enjoyed it. However, I vary her before-bed teas, as well. Sometimes, after breakfast, I'll give her a caffeinated tea if she seems unusually tired and is complaining about her tiredness. I did this yesterday and it did the trick.
    The garlic, vitamin E and daily aspirin were discontinued after her blood transfusion in September of 2007 by the ER doctor's orders in order to keep her blood from becoming too thin. I may reinstate two garlic pills (500 mg apiece) in order to add a natural antibiotic to her schedule; at the moment, though, I'm waiting to see if she continues to host lots of infections, as she seems to have been doing, lately. I decided to eliminate the Vitamin C because she's getting plenty in her supplements.     I still use Aloe Vera gel in the morning but I haven't been able to get my hands on the pure stuff for a couple of weeks so she hasn't had that since 5/14/08. I also continue to use, for instance, curry powder in this and that fairly often to help control her Blood Glucose.