Home Medicine Cabinet & Medication

Not medical advice — always follow the package leaflet or your doctor for dosages. Emergency numbers for your country: see the region box (112 works everywhere in the EU). Example: in Germany, the out-of-hours medical service is 116 117.

Basic medicine cabinet

Dressings: - [ ] Sterile gauze pads, gauze bandages, conforming bandages - [ ] Plasters/adhesive bandages (assortment + roll), blister plasters - [ ] Triangular bandage, first-aid dressing packs (as in a car first-aid kit) - [ ] Disposable gloves, scissors, tweezers (splinters/ticks), safety pins - [ ] Wound antiseptic (e.g. octenidine- or polyhexanide-based) - [ ] Emergency/space blanket (gold/silver)

Medication (over the counter): - [ ] Pain/fever relief: ibuprofen AND paracetamol (acetaminophen) — they work differently - [ ] Diarrhoea: oral rehydration salts (more important than anti-diarrhoeal drugs!), loperamide for emergencies - [ ] Nausea: e.g. dimenhydrinate - [ ] Allergy: antihistamine (e.g. cetirizine) - [ ] Colds: decongestant nasal spray, throat lozenges - [ ] Burn/wound gel, sports ointment (bruises) - [ ] Clinical thermometer

Personal (critical!): - [ ] Regular prescription medication: a supply for at least 2–4 weeks (discuss with your doctor, get prescriptions in good time) - [ ] List of all medications + dosages on paper (also important for emergency doctors) - [ ] If you wear glasses: spare pair

Medication that needs refrigeration (e.g. insulin) during a power cut

• Keep the fridge closed: it stays cool for many hours
• After that: coolest spot in the home, water bath, cellar
• Insulin: tolerates room temperature for a limited time (depending on the product, often ~4 weeks below 25–30 °C) — check the package leaflet NOW and write it down here: ……
• Never let it freeze!

Make your own oral rehydration solution (for diarrhoea/vomiting)

WHO recipe: 1 litre of boiled (cooled) water + 6 level teaspoons of sugar + ½ level teaspoon of salt. Drink in small sips. Especially important for children and older people — dehydration is the main danger.

Shelf life

• Expired tablets (stored dry): usually lose potency slowly and rarely become "toxic" — in an emergency, a slightly expired painkiller is better than none. Exceptions — never use when expired: drops/syrups/ointments (risk of germs), insulin, antibiotic suspensions, anything cloudy or smelling different
• Check once a year and replace expired items (dispose of them according to local rules — pharmacy or household waste, never down the toilet)

Storage

Cool, dry, dark, out of children's reach — NOT in the bathroom (humidity). A bedroom cupboard is ideal.