#Care3How2 - Can't Make the Pharmacy Run? What Now?

We’re spotlighting the different ways you can use Care3 to request help from your care team – from rides to social visits. Today we’re focusing on one of the most common errands for caregivers. How many times have you had to run to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription drug or an over-the-counter cold remedy for your loved one? And how many times has it been an inconvenience, given your busy schedule and the closing time of the pharmacy?

Recommended Actions • Give a Ride • Visit Your Loved One • Add Appointment • Pick Up Medicine • Get Answers • Buy Something • Do Something

Next time, instead of stressing about making it the drugstore between soccer practice and PTA, why not send out a request for help using Care3? Chances are, someone on your care team may be able to swing by and pick up Grandpa’s blood pressure medication. In addition, they’d likely be thrilled to lend a hand. Family and friends are always asking what they can do to help with Grandpa, right? This is one of the ways of answering that question and allowing others to pitch in with a clear, specific task.

Start by logging onto Care3 and clicking the Action Message icon in the Care Team conversation. Then enter the name of the medicine, the pharmacy, the pharmacy’s location and the time the prescription will be ready. In the “Notes” section, you may want to note the pharmacy’s closing time as well as anything else relevant, such as the expected price of the drug and the fact that the pharmacy already has all of Grandpa’s insurance information on file. Send off your request and receive a notification on your iPhone during soccer practice that your neighbor Ellen has volunteered. Click “Thanks” to show your gratitude and exhale knowing that it’s one less thing on your plate for today.

See how Action Messages get others to help? There’s still more you can do with them, though.