- Use a weekly or daily pill organizer. These boxes, which are plastic with a section for every day of the week, are often useful. They come with large-print labels, but make sure that the print is a contrasting color—black print on a white label, for example. Pill boxes also come with tactile labels. The visually impaired person can ask a friend, family member, or home health aide to fill the pill box. There are also talking pill organizers available.
- Bottles can be labeled in braille or large print using Dymo or label-on tape. Also, the first letter of the medication name can be written in white glue or a 3-D pen (also known as a Hi-Mark Tactile Pen) on the lid. When dry, these raised markings can be read with the fingertips.
- Low vision devices, such as magnifiers are the most popular method for reading labels and pill boxes. Magnifying pill bottles, such as the Medifier, fit all standard prescription vials.
- Use rubber bands to differentiate medications that are stored in separate containers.
- Use rubber bands to keep track of the daily dosage of a medication. For example, place rubber bands around the bottle or container equal to the number of dosages taken each day of that particular medication. Remove one band each time a dosage is taken. Replace the bands at the end of each day to begin the system again.
- If the visually impaired person has three different prescriptions in similarly sized bottles, he/she can mark the first with one rubber band, the second with two bands, and the third with three bands.
Talking labels are an option. Using a VOXCOM, medication labels are recorded on a card and attached to the bottle. To identify the medication, simply slide the card through the VOXCOM and it reads the label aloud. The Talking RX Prescription recorder allows the visually impaired person or someone he/she trusts to set it up. This bottle comes with a recording device to note the contents of the bottle; once recorded, push the button on the side to hear what’s in the bottle. Tel-Rx allows an individual to record up to 20 seconds of the information from a prescription label.
- Use a weekly or daily pill organizer. These boxes, which are plastic with a section for every day of the week, are often useful. They come with large-print labels, but make sure that the print is a contrasting color—black print on a white label, for example. Pill boxes also come with tactile labels. The visually impaired person can ask a friend, family member, or home health aide to fill the pill box. There are also talking pill organizers available.
- Bottles can be labeled in braille or large print using Dymo or label-on tape. Also, the first letter of the medication name can be written in white glue or a 3-D pen (also known as a Hi-Mark Tactile Pen) on the lid. When dry, these raised markings can be read with the fingertips.
- Low vision devices, such as magnifiers are the most popular method for reading labels and pill boxes. Magnifying pill bottles, such as the Medifier, fit all standard prescription vials.
- Use rubber bands to differentiate medications that are stored in separate containers.
- Use rubber bands to keep track of the daily dosage of a medication. For example, place rubber bands around the bottle or container equal to the number of dosages taken each day of that particular medication. Remove one band each time a dosage is taken. Replace the bands at the end of each day to begin the system again.
- If the visually impaired person has three different prescriptions in similarly sized bottles, he/she can mark the first with one rubber band, the second with two bands, and the third with three bands.
Talking labels are an option. Using a VOXCOM, medication labels are recorded on a card and attached to the bottle. To identify the medication, simply slide the card through the VOXCOM and it reads the label aloud. The Talking RX Prescription recorder allows the visually impaired person or someone he/she trusts to set it up. This bottle comes with a recording device to note the contents of the bottle; once recorded, push the button on the side to hear what’s in the bottle. Tel-Rx allows an individual to record up to 20 seconds of the information from a prescription label.