I already talked with the director and he said he can't do anything because my mom has rights. I don't have the POA, but I am responsible for her in that nursing home. For 8 months this person has been hiding supplements to give it to her. I am worried about her health
You said your father has POA. Has your father tried speaking to this friend ?
Or is your father ok with what is happening ?
Unfortunately since you do not have POA I don’t think there is much you can do .
Perhaps call APS , or Ombudsman ?
Your mother can not make decisions and is vulnerable because of this situation
I would be concerned about your mom too since supplements can interfere with prescription medications.
Even if there aren’t any interactions, some people go overboard with supplements.
Do you know why this person feels compelled to give your mother supplements? I would tell this friend that they need to stop giving her these supplements because they could potentially harm your mother.
Does your mom want to take the supplements? Does she even know what they are? Do you know? Can you somehow ask her doctor to intervene for you since the facility isn’t being helpful?
Wishing you and your family all the best.
Certainly a talk with Friend is warranted. As suggested, having one of the staff - perhaps the nursing manager - involved.
"The dietary supplement industry is regulated on a federal level in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as well as by government agencies in each of the 50 states.
Nearly all facets of dietary supplement manufacturing, labeling and marketing are covered by extensive regulations issued and enforced by FDA and FTC.
The FDA has regulatory authority under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act as amended in 1994 by the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) and in 2006 by the Dietary Supplement and Nonprescription Drug Consumer Protection Act. Under DSHEA, dietary supplements are regulated as a category of food. FDA regulates both finished dietary supplement products and dietary ingredients. By law, it is illegal to manufacture or market dietary supplement products that are adulterated or misbranded and FDA has regulatory authority to remove such products from the marketplace."
- Dietary supplements are regulated by FDA and FTC | Council for Responsible Nutrition (crnusa.org)
From the FDA's own website...
"In general, FDA is limited to postmarket enforcement because, unlike drugs that must be proven safe and effective for their intended use before marketing, > > > there are no provisions in the law for FDA to approve dietary supplements for safety before they reach the consumer." < < <
Source: https://www.fda.gov/food/dietary-supplements#:~:text=FDA%20regulates%20both%20finished%20dietary,conventional%22%20foods%20and%20drug%20products.
Please understand that supplements are not required to prove effectiveness and safety.
"Caveat emptor" (Latin: "Buyer, beware!")
Any meds or supplements would need to have an MD's orders. Is this a "care home"?
‘You could be in trouble’ is more likely to work than ‘stop it with your wonderful natural helpful pills’.
In this case I agree with others who have suggested a discussion with mom and her visitor about the potential dangers of unknown substances and mixing drugs. However, if she is competent, I think it is mom's decision to make, hopefully in conjunction with a medical professional. That said, perfect "safety" isn't always a thing for old people. Feeling better (or the perception of same) very well may be.
Are you secondary POA for Mom? If Dad can't make informed decisions pretaining to Mom anymore, maybe he should step down and allow u to invoke your POA.
My MIL had been on a blood thinner and told me that they could not get her numbers right. I knew she had been taking fish oil and had just read where it is a blood thinner. I asked her if her Dr knew she was taking it. Since I got "that look" I knew her Dr didn't know. I told her to tell her Dr the next time she saw her.
Tell this person that you understand they are trying to be helpful to your mother, and that they are well meaning, and that she appreciates their visits, as do you--but that your mother is currently on medications that can cause great harm if supplements are given that interfere with absorption and etc. and that her doctor says she should be taking NOTHING of this sort without his/her supervision.
Tell this person IN FRONT OF your mother, and a staff member if same will attend the talk, that you have no wish to prevent visits, but that if you again find any supplements given to Mom you will have to forbid visits. (pretend you CAN do so).
Tell your mother that you need agreement that you can check her room for the presence of unknown and known supplements and substances, and that they should be given to you for elimination.
If none of this works, unfortunately, and hoping you are at the least MPOA, you will need a doctor letter to the facility that ___________is visiting and is plying his/her patient with supplements that could be harmful to your mother's health, and that he is requesting this person visit ONLY accompanied to staff. Something to that effect.
I honestly cannot think, once you have done all that, what else can be done but I sure wish you luck and I sure hope this stops as supplements are NOT BENIGN and certainly CAN do harm. I hope you will update us.
"... if the PoA authority isn't active (ie your Mom does not have cognitive impairment) then she gets to decide if she wants to take them or not."
Even so, if she has even mild memory impairment, she shouldn't be left to make this decision.
And secondly unless you see visible harm being done by these supposed "natural supplements" I wouldn't give them a second thought. What do you have against "natural supplements" anyway? Would you rather your mom be on high doses of prescription drugs?
I personally am all about anything that is natural and will take a supplement over a drug any day anytime!
Why don't you instead just try enjoying your visits with your mom while you can, as none of us are guaranteed tomorrow?
If you are all for "anything that is natural", are you for arsenic? That's 100% natural. Or foxglove? That can cause heart probems. Etc.
"Any ingredient in a multiple vitamin supplement can be toxic in large amounts, but the most serious risk comes from iron or calcium. Additional risks are associated with large or toxic doses of calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin A."
Source: https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/poison/multiple-vitamin-overdose#:~:text=Any%20ingredient%20in%20a%20multiple,vitamin%20D%2C%20and%20vitamin%20A.
I actually know someone who died from a tainted shipment of L-tryptophan (she was a contractor of ours) and the retired Pastor of my church had permanent circulatory problems in both legs from the same supplement and shipment.