Effectively Organizing the Family Medicine Cabinet

Keeping the family medicine cabinet well organized is important for safety reasons in addition to simple convenience. After all, if you allow the medicine cabinet to fall into disarray, you might not be able to locate the supplies you need in the case of an emergency. It's also easy to overlook outdated medications or a shortage of a particular medical supply if things are not kept neat and organized. If your medicine cabinet is a mess, here are some tips you can use to get it back into shape fast.

Start With a Good Cleaningr
Removing everything from the medicine cabinet first is the preferred method, especially if it's been a while since you've cleaned it. Clean the interior walls and the shelves with a good disinfecting cleaner. Then, go through all your medications, checking the expiration date. However, don't simply toss these old medications in the trash or down the drain. Instead, call your pharmacy and ask if they offer medication collection. This would also be a good time to dispose of your old toothbrush so that you can replace it with a new one. If you find any items that really don't belong in the medicine cabinet, return them to their proper location so that they aren't taking up valuable medicine cabinet space.

Taking Inventoryr
Once you've thrown away anything that is outdated, you might find you are missing some crucial medicine cabinet supplies. You might not need to immediately replace that old dried up bottle of nail polish that you threw away, but if you are out of antibiotic cream, you'll want to replenish it immediately. Make sure that you have everything you need for your emergency medical needs, such as bandages, gauze pads, adhesive tape, antiseptic, and antibiotic cream or solution. You'll also want to keep aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen on hand, along with any other necessary medications such as cough suppressants and nasal decongestants. Make sure you have tweezers, a thermometer, and a small first aid manual. You'll probably also want to make sure you have hydrocortisone cream, calamine lotion and alcohol wipes. If you are missing any of these items, make a list and head to the store to replenish your supply. If you find that you are running low on any of your prescription medications, now would also be a good time to get your prescriptions refilled.

Developing an Organization Strategy

It can be helpful to store the items you use most often on the lower shelves of the medicine cabinet. If you can adjust the height of the shelves, re-arrange them until you find the optimal arrangement for the size of your bottles and containers. Sometimes narrow baskets, bins or storage trays can work well for keeping things organized. See-through plastic containers which are clearly labeled can also be useful for some items, especially if you don't want to store the entire package in the medicine cabinet. It can also be helpful to keep associated items together, such as keeping all cold medications on one shelf. Once you get everything organized, be sure to repeat the organization process two or three times a year to keep everything in tip-top shape.