Planning for Successful Employment

 

Welcome back as we continue to discuss Employability Skills and the Local Industry Standards. We will continue to look at ways you can support your individual NOW for competitive employment. We will pick back up looking at Work Preparedness. 

Work Preparedness: Self-manage medications

It may seem odd to look at managing medication when thinking about employment, it seems a better fit for Independent Living, however it falls in both categories. It falls under both categories because many individuals with disabilities have medications that require ongoing specific usage to perform at its best, therefore managing medications is an important part of successful employment. In some workplaces there is a location where acetaminophen and ibuprofen are available for employees to access independently when they need it. 

Family Practice Ideas:

1. Include your individual when calling or entering refills, have them complete the parts they can, assist where you must. This could mean writing and practicing a script to use when calling the doctor’s office. Many offices and pharmacies now allow refill requests to be completed on an app or through an automated telephone system, have your individual complete the parts they can. 

2. Mark a calendar, digital or written, one week before the medication would be needed to ask for the refill. This can be adjusted based on drug store or mail order needs. 

3. Practice setting up a weekly or monthly medicine container using M&Ms with a picture guide. Here is a sample, apologies the pictures were better, but I removed identifying information. 

4. Practice using a safe pill cutter with M&Ms so valuable pills are not cut incorrectly when practicing. 

5. Seek out Independent Supported Living Programs in your area and ask if your individual is eligible for an evaluation so you can see what areas need work. Being in the habit of using a picture medication guide mentioned above can also be helpful when participating in Independent Supported Living Programs so all caregivers are seeing the same information. 

6. As age allows have your individual keep a list of their medications available to them, like in their phone. For example, on an iPhone they can be listed in the Health App under the medical ID section. 

7. Complete this Emergency Card and have your individual keep it on them in a wallet. 

8. Have them wear a RoadID, the original or medical option and purchase the annual online emergency response profile. 

School Practice Ideas:

1. Practice filling a weekly or monthly medicine container using colored beads and the medication guide. 

2. If your individual takes medication during the day, set up a system for them to go to the nurse on their own to go take their medication. This can be completed in a variety of ways, using a cell phone alarm, making a specific time of day for them to go such as after lunch when walking back to class. 

3. If your individual takes medication at school, have them be responsible for letting you know when the supply is running low. You can begin this by having the nurse tell them and have them relay the message to home, with a layer of support from the nurse that is an email home letting you know they should be telling you the medication is low. 

4. Complete activities that identify basic over-the-counter medications to their uses. For example a picture of someone with a headache and matching photos of acetaminophen and ibuprofen, or a picture of someone with a stomach ache and matching a photo of Pepto-bismol. This can be differentiated by using name brand and store brand photos as the individual becomes more skilled. 

5. Role play what to do if morning medication is forgotten and it is needed to complete the day. If this happens after a busy morning, encourage the individual to problem solve and make the parent phone call on their own. 

6. As an individual is able or allowed, keep 1 dose of medication in a discrete container in their backpack so it is available should it be needed. 

How can you and your individual’s IEP team begin using these ideas now? Check back in the next blog for the next installment of how you can begin supporting your individual now for competitive employment.