Meds and dorm rooms/fridge

[Jen500]

Ds is going to college this fall and will be sharing an apartment style dorm on campus with his brother and 2 school friends. (2 bedrooms, kitchen, bath). He takes meds that need to stay in the refrigerator, and gets a 3 month supply each delivery. Is it ok to keep them in the apt fridge? The meds aren't a controlled substance but cost about 8k for 3 months. I thought about getting a small fridge for his room, which we could do, but the room is very very very small so they need to minimize the 'stuff' they bring.

[8filltheheart]

We initially thought this was going to be an issue for our Dd, but they changed her meds before she attended.  Anyway, I spoke with the student health center about having her meds shipped and stored there bc of their cost and wanting a consistent temperature. They said that is a normal thing for them, so it was a simple solution. She could just go in and talk to a nurse on duty to bring her her meds.

[Pawz4me]

Since you describe them as friends I assume you know the other two are trustworthy? If so I don't see a problem. When DS22 was sharing an apartment with two other boys they each had their own shelf/zone in the fridge, and the others didn't mess with stuff that wasn't in their zone.

[8filltheheart]

7 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

Since you describe them as friends I assume you know the other two are trustworthy? If so I don't see a problem. When DS22 was sharing an apartment with two other boys they each had their own shelf/zone in the fridge, and the others didn't mess with stuff that wasn't in their zone.

I would be more concerned about the fridge's door being left open or putting hot leftovers in or other factors influencing the temperature. These types of meds are expensive and can be compromised by temperature fluctuations. I don't think it is necessarily a fair burden on the roommates to expect them to protect his meds.

[AngieW in Texas]

I would talk with the health center. You absolutely do NOT want to lose two month's worth of meds due to the door not being shut all the way or hot food raising the temperature. If the health center could store most of the meds with him having just 1-2 weeks of medication in the fridge at a time, that would be best.

[GoodGrief]

Perhaps get a thermometer for the refrigerator to monitor the actual temperature. Honestly though, I'd probably just get the small refrigerator to be safe.

[linders]

The fridge of her own sounds best. If you go with the communal fridge, I wouldn't plan for her to go to the student health center - sounds like a hassle. How about have the meds shipped to student health and she retrieves a 2-week batch as needed? Then if something happens to fridge, she has only lost a fraction of the shipment.I would still worry about the hot-food-in-fridge thing, though. She might not know if her meds have been compromised.

[Bootsie]

Does the university allow individual small refrigerators in the rooms? (DS's school does not, so I would check and make sure that you do not need special permission.)  Also, I would check to see i there are any requirements regarding the fridge being cleaned out and turned off during mid-semester breaks, Thanksgiving holidays, etc.  I know a number of universities unplug all of these appliances during longer breaks.

If constant temperature for a three-month supply is critical (so much that warm leftovers being placed in the fridge would alter the temp too much), I would also be concerned about a small refrigerator maintaining constant temp.  IME, it is hard to get one to keep a constant temperature throughout the fridge. 

I would see if the health center can keep the bulk of the three month supply if these are concerns.

  

[8filltheheart]

1 hour ago, jdahlquist said:

Does the university allow individual small refrigerators in the rooms? (DS's school does not, so I would check and make sure that you do not need special permission.)  Also, I would check to see i there are any requirements regarding the fridge being cleaned out and turned off during mid-semester breaks, Thanksgiving holidays, etc.  I know a number of universities unplug all of these appliances during longer breaks.

If constant temperature for a three-month supply is critical (so much that warm leftovers being placed in the fridge would alter the temp too much), I would also be concerned about a small refrigerator maintaining constant temp.  IME, it is hard to get one to keep a constant temperature throughout the fridge. 

I would see if the health center can keep the bulk of the three month supply if these are concerns.

  

I agree with all of the above.  The type of med being discussed has not been mentioned, but if it is a biologic, this is the info we were provided for biologics:

Quote

5.2. Types of Refrigerators
Bar Fridge Units
Any style of small, single door (bar style) fridge is not recommended for the storage of vaccines and biologics. This type of fridge is unpredictable and
may not maintain temperatures necessary for product stability.
Domestic Refrigerators
Domestic combination refrigerator and freezer units, though not recommended for storage of vaccines and biologics, are acceptable. Domestic refrigerators are designed for food storage and not for storage of vaccines and biologics. Precautions and fridge modifications are needed
5.3. Modifications to Improve Domestic Fridge Temperature Stability
To ensure stability of the temperature in a domestic-type fridge follow the Magnetic Vaccine Storage Diagram (Resource 1, page 23) and:
• Ensure no more than 50 percent (50%) of the internal volume is filled with vaccines and biologics.
• Routinely check the door to ensure that doors are tightly closed.
• Store full bottles of water or gel packs on empty shelves, on the bottom (or in bottom drawers) and in the door to help maintain stable temperature during frequent door opening or in the event of a power failure.
• Keep freezer packs in the freezer compartment.
• Minimize the number of times the door is opened to reduce temperature fluctuations

 

[Jen500]

11 minutes ago, 8FillTheHeart said:

I agree with all of the above.  The type of med being discussed has not been mentioned, but if it is a biologic, this is the info we were provided for biologics:

 

It's a biologic...after reading all of these posts I think I'll have him see if he can keep it at the health center. I didn't even consider how much some refrigerators can vary in temperature--I know I've used some that if the settings aren't adjusted just right the items in the back can freeze.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Not sure the volume of medication in question.  I think the health center storage is a good idea for larger quantities.  For smaller amounts (like a couple weeks' worth) could he store it in a container with gel packs around it to help maintain the temperature?  I'm thinking of something like a small container inside a larger container with gel packs in the space between the containers.