It May Seem Obvious to You...: Giving Medication Instructions to Patients

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Abstract
To the Editor.— I am writing with a concern that I believe to be of extreme importance. Recently, a physician prescribed medication for me and in her hurry to see other patients put simply "as directed" on the label, although she never provided such directions. I was unable to get in touch with her by phone to acquire those instructions. As it turned out, the medication did require explicit instructions, and failure to follow them could have had catastrophic results. Physicians must remember to give instructions for all prescriptions and should, if possible, accompany the prescription with written material. To prevent misuse, each medication should be labeled in such a way as to remind the patient what the purpose of the drug is, for example, "for the heart," "for blood pressure," and "for ear pain." The patient also needs to be told about any precautions as well as what to

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