Most parents are vigilant about ensuring that their children wear seat belts and look both ways before crossing the street, but there may be a few safety hazards in your home that might have been overlooked. While investing in doorbell cameras, security alarm systems, and window locks is beneficial, busy parents may easily forget that children can put themselves in unsafe situations with everyday household items.
Simply leaving household cleaning supplies on the counter or leaving prescription medications on your nightstand can pose a risk to your children's health. Every parent would like to create a safe environment for their children, but even the most loving parents may notice child safety hazards in their own home. Let's discuss a few child safety hazards that you may not have been aware of, along with a few ways that you can create a safer household for children of all ages.
If your child grabs a sharp kitchen object, a disastrous accident can occur in the blink of an eye. Most parents keep cutlery in drawers or other hard-to-reach places, but they often forget to ensure that the dishwasher is locked correctly. If not, curious toddlers can easily open the dishwasher and hurt themselves by playing with sharp kitchen utensils.
Moreover, properly closing the dishwasher ensures that children don't access and ingest toxic dishwasher tablets. In 2020, 1500 children were admitted to the hospital after accidentally ingesting dishwasher tablets. However, dishwasher tablets aren't the only kitchen object that could pose a child safety hazard. Any kitchen objects with vibrant colors or interesting textures could spark the curiosity of babies and toddlers, so it's best to store these items in places that aren't easily accessible.
Even innocuous daily occurrences like bath time can be risky when you have a young child. One simple way for parents to minimize bathroom hazards is by adding slip-resistant mats to prevent accidental falls. Every parent knows how challenging it is to get a toddler to sit still, but standing up in the tub can be dangerous when children are just learning to walk. Encourage your small child to stay seated during bath time by keeping them busy with bath-safe toys.
Parents often overlook the importance of securing bathroom trash cans because they often contain biohazards such as used razors and other waste materials that may spread disease. Consider purchasing a childproof trash can for your bathroom to reduce the likelihood that your child will tamper with waste materials.
Small openings often spark curiosity in young children, particularly in toddlers that are learning how objects fit together. While curiosity often presents an opportunity for parents to teach their children essential life lessons, drains pose significant risks for young children.
If you have a small child, install drain covers in bathrooms and sinks to reduce the risk that your child will get objects or their limbs stuck in drains. Drain covers are essential in laundry rooms and basements to ensure children don't clog them with toys or other household items.
Studies show that 50,000 children under the age of five go to the emergency room for poisoning after ingesting medication they aren't prescribed. Parents should do their best to prevent their children from accidentally ingesting prescription and over-the-counter medicines by practicing medication safety. A small dosage of common prescriptions such as opioids, blood pressure, and diabetes medications can be fatal for young children. Even over-the-counter health supplements like daily multivitamins can have dire consequences when a toddler consumes them. Meanwhile, curious teenagers may want to experiment with prescription medications they shouldn't consume.
Practice safe medication storage by keeping prescription and over-the-counter medications in locked cabinets with safety latches that prevent young children from accessing your medications. While some parents keep their medications in lock boxes, consider taking this a step further by using secure, locking pill bottles. Safe Rx locking pill bottles complete with a 4-digit pin will ensure that toddlers and teens are unable to gain unauthorized access to your prescription medications.
Even natural, eco-friendly cleaning products are filled with highly toxic chemicals when ingested. When you're in the process of childproofing your house, ensure that there are no cleaning products or detergents within a toddler's reach. You should also install child locks on cabinets close to the ground to ensure your kids don't get into trouble.
Electrocution due to wiring hazards accounts for 20% of all electrocution incidents in the United States. As a parent, it's crucial to childproof your home by protecting your electrical sockets with plastic covers. If there are any damaged electrical cords, get them repaired as soon as possible. Consider insulating wires to reduce any chance of an electrical accident. Furthermore, it would be best if you also took the time to educate children about the dangers of an electric shock and why they should not touch electrical wires or outlets.
While most parents understand basic child safety, like using a car seat or keeping toddlers away from sharp corners, many fail to realize the danger of leaving prescription medications in their purse or on the nightstand. It’s important for parents to use secure, locking pill bottles, which ensure that children aren’t able to access your prescription medications, even if they’re not tucked away in your medicine cabinet.
At Safe Rx, we know that medication safety begins with reducing unauthorized access to prescriptions. That’s why Safe Rx locking pill bottles allows patients to protect their prescription medications with a secure 4-digit code.
Parents founded Safe Rx with other parents in mind to create a safer world for our children. At Safe Rx, we encourage parents to educate themselves on the impact of prescription drug misuse and make changes to reduce the risk of addiction.
If you’re interested in learning more about how Safe Rx can promote medication safety and help keep your children safe, contact us today!
When a person with a substance use disorder seeks treatment, they often doubt the effectiveness of rehab and recovery programs. It can be challenging to provide a conclusive answer because the results vary significantly from person to person. There is no single treatment for substance use disorder but rather a wide range of varying approaches to help individuals reach their specific goals.
Furthermore, one cannot measure the effectiveness of a treatment plan in terms of total success or failure but rather through the gradual improvement and lessening of symptoms. In addition, one cannot measure a treatment program’s success in a clinical setting. A treatment program’s true success can only be measured by the patient’s response when facing the challenges of their real lives that led them to develop a substance use disorder in the first place.
Some patients may use medication, talk therapy, or a combination of these methods to manage their symptoms. To evaluate the success of a treatment or rehabilitation program, one must assess the individual’s ability to become a productive member of society while also making their desired lifestyle changes.
Treatment programs help those with substance use disorder stop compulsively seeking and using their substance of choice. There is a wide range of treatment options to choose from so that each patient can partake in a treatment method that meets their needs. Since substance use disorder is a chronic illness, most patients require long-term treatment.
Substance use disorders are typically treated with methods including the following:
Patients who choose to incorporate MAT or MOUD within their treatment plan should keep their medications in a secure, safe-locking pill bottle, like the Safe Rx Locking Pill bottle. These pill bottles come with a custom code to ensure that no one gains unauthorized access to medication that isn’t their own, keeping the bottle secure and tamper-proof wherever it goes.
When evaluating the effectiveness of substance use disorder, we must consider the possibility of more significant outcomes than stopping substance use. Healthcare professionals must also ensure that patients become healthy, functioning community members.
People who fully commit to their rehabilitation program and remain in treatment for the program’s duration reduce their risk of prolonged substance misuse and relapse. In addition, patients that obtain adequate treatment for substance use disorder report improvements in intrapersonal relationships, the workplace, and their psychological state.
It can be challenging to assess the validity of rehab and treatment for substance use disorder because the results are dependent on the individual’s issues and their involvement with treatment providers. Contrary to popular belief, substance use disorder is a chronic disease that patients must learn to cope with over time. With the right treatment plan, people with substance use disorder can mitigate the substance’s neurological and behavioral effects to improve their lives.
Unlike most other chronic disorders, with substance use disorder, people wrongfully consider the treatment a failure if the patient’s symptoms return. However, relapse rates for substance use disorders are congruent with the symptom recurrence rates for other chronic illnesses, including diabetes and hypertension. Healthcare professionals must adjust their treatment plan if someone with substance use disorder experiences lapses in usage.
The most effective treatment for a substance use disorder depends on the substance itself. For instance, medications are the most effective treatment option for people with opioid use disorders, but people with stimulant or cannabis use disorders often respond better to psychosocial treatment.
No single treatment is appropriate for every person with substance use disorder. Ultimately, there must be a paradigm shift that treats substance use disorder as a chronic illness, continually monitored throughout the patient’s lifetime. This disorder significantly alters the brain’s structure in ways that persist even after long periods of sobriety. However, when patients have access to multiple treatment options and tools to manage their symptoms successfully, they have the opportunity to make their desired lifestyle changes and become productive members of society.
Treatment for substance misuse can only be effective if patients have access to the proper support systems and tools. Although therapy alone may be sufficient for some patients to maintain sobriety, others can meet their goals with the support of prescription medications. People that choose to incorporate medications within their treatment plan must keep their medications safe, secure, and out of reach from unauthorized access.
An effective treatment plan includes accounting for the safe use and storage of prescription medications. At Safe Rx, we know that medication safety begins with reducing unauthorized access to prescriptions. That’s why Safe Rx locking pill bottles allows patients to protect their prescription medications with a secure 4-digit code.
