What is the best way to deal with a family member abusing/not taking prescription meds correctly?

My husbands grandmother is taking many prescripions from several different doctors. My in laws (live with them) and the rest of the family who have regular contact are worried about the behavoir they have been seeing. She is napping 3-5 times a day, shuffling and slurring her speech at times. The pharmacy keeps sending her notices in store and by mail about her medications interacting in dangerous ways. She wont read them, just throws them away. She thinks that she can take these drugs together as she "knows what she is doing". She wont talk to anyone in the family about the meds and that we are concerned ect., as this makes her very angry. She is leaving stoves on, falling asleep at the table with lit cigerettes &has everyone scared that she will hurt herself or someone esle (still driving). Weve tried being suble too, talking about a "friend" who is on a "oxycotton"-or other drugs- how dangerous we hear this can be when combined w'other drugs/alcohol ect. CAN WE HELP HER LEGALLY?

We dont think she is completly incompetent but needs help with her meds. She double takes them when shes not sure if she already took them. Refused to use an "old person pill box".

If there are people (several) that can account to these then you need to go to a lawyer and talk to them about getting a forced power of attny. That will make whoever is set in charge able to take her car from her if necessary as well as make sure she only takes the meds she should. That person can go to the pharmacy and the doctors and consult with them without her.

contact the department of children of families.

Her next of kin - husband, son or daughter - should call the prescribing doctor and advise him or her of exactly what you've said here. They have no way of knowing that this is happening unless someone tells them, and she certainly isn't going to say anything if she doesn't realize there's a problem. It's time for someone in her family to step up and alert the doctor before she gets hurt.

The doctor's name will be on the pill bottle if no one is sure who she's going to, but it sounds like she's having a lot of trouble keeping things straight. See if she's open to having someone accompany her to the doctor's to help remember what is said, two sets of ears is always better than one.

ok if it is only one doctor prescribing all this. The pharmacy actually can demand for the doctor to look up all that he has prescribe and reduce some of those prescriptions. If the pharmacy is sending all those notices, the husband or a son/daughter can demand for the doctor to reduce or look into it. Specially if it is obvious that the person is not aware of what she is doing.

See is sleepy and drowsy due to over medication.

What the husband can do, is keep all those meds locked up and only provide what she has to take at certain hour and keep a log that that medication was given already.

I think if the husband do this or her kids they may not need an aproval of a lawyer. They do need one to demand a doctor stop over prescribing some medications that the pharmacy knows that are dangerous and they are not doing anything.

Also, you said that you try to talk to doctors and they dont want to do anything. You can also let them know that the pharmacy is sending, notices on the dangers of some medication interactions and now you people are letting the doctor know about this and that since he has decided to ignore it, he can easily get into trouble cause of it and specially if she dies of an overdose.

*just think Anna Nichole