6 Ways to Convince Seniors to Take Medication

It can be challenging to get seniors to take their medication, even if it’s absolutely essential for their health.

The reasons behind their resistance vary widely, ranging from refusing on principle (such as “I’ve never taken medicine in my life, and I’m certainly not starting now!”), to being suspicious (such as fears of being poisoned in Alzheimer’s patients), to trying to maintain some control over their lives as they become increasingly more dependent on caregivers.

Since this important daily task can’t be overlooked, here are six ways to encourage your older adult to take their medication:

1. Focus on critical medications. Pick your battles as a caregiver. Rather than waste your time and energy trying to get your senior to take vitamins or supplements not specifically recommended by their doctor, focus instead on any medications prescribed by doctors that are essential for both health and quality of life. (Vitamins and supplements aren’t always as effective for older adults anyway, and can actually reduce the effectiveness of certain medications, or even cause negative drug reactions.)
2. Let the doctor be the messenger. If your senior won’t believe or can’t grasp the fact that there are serious consequences to not taking medication, ask the doctor to explain what will happen if it isn’t taken. Sometimes older adults respond better to experts or authority figures than they do to family members.
3. Check for unpleasant side effects. Find out if your older adult is refusing their medicine because side effects are making them ill, such as nausea, dizziness, or upset stomach. If so, speak to their doctor to see if there are any other replacement medications without negative side effects that they could switch to instead.
4. Change the formula or flavor. If medicine is really hard to swallow because it either gets stuck in your throat or tastes horrible, it’s no wonder your senior is refusing it. If this is a problem, check with the drugstore or compounding pharmacy to find out if they can change the delivery of the medication (liquid, crushed pill, whole pill, etc.) to make it easier to swallow.
5. Address emotions instead of words. Understanding more about why the senior is refusing their medication might help you find a solution. Try to discover the underlying fear or emotion behind the refusal. Instead of getting frustrated or angry when the individual says no to their medicine, gently ask questions to get to the root issue.
6. Keep a positive attitude. Everyone, and especially someone with dementia, picks up on tone of voice and body language. If you find yourself tensing up because you dread telling your senior that it’s time for medication, the person could sense those negative emotions and become even more resistant. The best remedy is to take some time to prepare yourself before offering the medicine. Breathe deeply, calm your thoughts, and focus on being patient and kind.

You may need to try various strategies until you find one that works, but eventually you’ll find the “path of least resistance” when giving medication.

One very helpful way for caregivers to simplify giving medications is by utilizing MedPack, which can be obtained through an organization such as White Cross Pharmacy. MedPack is a pre-packaged medication-dispensing system where pills are organized by dose, time, and date, and are delivered in individual pouches that come on a roll, much like a roll of stamps. This medication management system is designed to help patients, especially those with multiple medications or those who need medication reminders, take their pills correctly and consistently.

One of your main jobs as a caregiver is to ensure that your older adult is kept as safe and healthy as possible, so it’s well worth your time to invest in making sure this important daily task is accomplished successfully.