Medication Awareness

This course aims to provide learners with the knowledge required to support the use of medication in health and social care settings. It provides information on the different types, classifications and forms of medication, as well as providing guidance on safe storage and disposal.

Medication awareness training is essential in the health and social care sector. Figures show that hundreds of deaths each year in the UK can be linked to medication errors, with more than 200 million made every year in total.

This is according to a 2018 study from the University of Manchester, which highlighted the importance of health and social care managers treating medication awareness principles as a priority among their workforces.

What’s more, not only are prescription, dosage and other medication errors potentially harmful to patients’ health, statistics show that avoidable adverse drug reactions cost the already overstretched NHS some £98.5 million each year.

It is therefore vital that all health and social care staff are aware of the different types, classifications and forms of medication, as well as how they should be stored and disposed of. The Medication Awareness course has been designed with all of these factors in mind.

Our Medication Awareness course aims to improve learners’ understanding of the necessity of accurate recording and reporting when medication is being administered, in the interests of patient safety and the wider NHS.

Who should take this course and why?
The Medication Awareness module is designed for anyone who administers medication as part of their job. This could be doctors, nurses, pharmacy assistants, first aiders, care home staff and community carers, for example. Our Medication Awareness course aims to improve learners’ understanding of the necessity of accurate recording and reporting when medication is being administered, in the interests of patient safety and the wider NHS.

The course content underpins knowledge with the ‘Support use of medication in social care settings’ unit of the Qualification and Credit Framework (QCF), and is also part of the following qualifications:

• Level 3 Diploma for the Children and Young People’s Workforce
• Level 2 Diploma in Health and Social Care (Adults) for England
• Level 3 Diploma in Health and Social Care (Adults) for England
• Level 3 Diploma in Health and Social Care (Adults) for Wales and Northern Ireland

What does this course cover?
The Medication Awareness course covers the following lesson plan:

• Welcome and learning objectives
• Introduction
• The legislative framework for the use of medication in a social care setting
• Common types of medication and their use
• Roles and responsibilities in the use of medication in a social care setting
• Techniques for administering medication
• Receive, store and dispose of medication safely
• Promote the rights of the individual when managing medication

After completing the course, learners will be able to:

• Describe relevant legislation
• Recognise different types of medication
• Define roles and responsibilities in the administration of medication
• Describe relevant techniques for administering medication
• List considerations when receiving, storing and disposing of medication
• Identify the rights of an individual
• Describe suitable recording and reporting techniques relevant to medication administration

Medication Awareness Certificate
Learners will be able to download a digital certificate on completion of the medication training. This can be printed, and we suggest you keep it for your records.The content of this course has been independently certified as conforming to universally accepted Continuous Professional Development (CPD) guidelines.

Who is this course for?
The Medication Awareness course is designed for anyone who administers medication as part of their job. This could be doctors, nurses, pharmacy assistants, first aiders, care home staff and community carers, for example.

Course accreditation
The content of this medication training online course has been independently certified as conforming to universally accepted Continuous Professional Development (CPD) guidelines.

Course duration
The Medication Awareness course should take two to three hours to complete, but this depends entirely on your individual learning speed. With our Learning Management System, Enable, you can proceed as quickly or slowly as you like.

Entry requirements
There are no specific entry requirements for this course.