What must be done with medications brought into the institution by patients?

When patients bring medications into a healthcare institution, it is crucial that those medications undergo a thorough identification and quality assurance process before administration. This ensures that the medications are appropriate for the patient’s condition, have not expired, and do not present any potential risks due to interactions with other medications the patient may be taking.

Administering medications immediately without this verification could lead to serious safety risks, including adverse drug reactions or incorrect dosing. Similarly, disposing of the medications without any record or oversight bypasses important protocols that help maintain proper medication management and safety standards within the institution. While patient consent is relevant for the use of their own medications, it does not replace the necessity for identifying and performing quality checks on the medications. Therefore, the correct approach is to ensure that medications are identified and quality assured before they can be safely administered to patients.