The 7 Rights of Medication: A Complete Guide to Safe Medication Assistance

The 7 Rights of Medication help because:

• They support safe medication administration in healthcare and community care settings.
• They promote accountability and ensure compliance with workplace policies and Australian care standards.
• Medication competency builds worker confidence and improves the safety and quality of care provided.
• They help strengthen client trust and ensure medication tasks are performed within a worker's scope of practice.

Examples include:

• Tablets
• Capsules
• Liquids
• Syrups

When assisting with these medications, support workers should:

• Wash their hands before and after providing assistance.
• Avoid touching the dropper tip to the eye, ear or any other surface.
• Follow the prescribed number of drops.
• Help the client remain in the correct position for the recommended time, if required.

When assisting with patches, support workers should:

• Confirm the correct application site.
• Remove the old patch if instructed before applying a new one.
• Rotate application sites where required.
• Record the date and time the patch was applied or replaced.

When providing medication support, support workers should:

• Follow the client's care plan and medication chart.
• Encourage independence where appropriate.
• Monitor for adverse reactions or changes in condition.
• Report concerns promptly and document all assistance.

Key takeaways:

• Follow the 7 Rights of Medication to reduce errors and improve client safety.
• Always verify the right person, medication, dose, time, route, reason and documentation.
• Support workers may assist with oral medications, eye and ear drops, topical creams, inhalers and transdermal patches.
• Encourage self-administration of medication where appropriate.
• Work within your scope of practice and follow workplace procedures.
• Ongoing medication training builds confidence and medication competency.