What should be kept separately in the medication cabinet?

• A. Injectable medications
• B. Oral and topical medicines
• C. Expired medications
• D. Liquids only

Answer: (B)

Keeping medication types by administration route in the cabinet helps prevent mix-ups and protects patient safety. Oral and topical medicines are used by non-sterile routes and have different handling, labeling, and administration processes than injectable meds. When they’re kept separate, it’s easier to verify you’re selecting the correct product for ingestion or topical use, avoids the risk of giving a medicine by the wrong route, and reduces the chance of contamination or cross-contact between forms. This separation also supports proper storage and expiry checks.

(Expired medications should be stored separately for disposal, and injectables require their own sterile storage.)