If you take regular medicines, the useful first step is an accurate list, not deciding which products seem relevant to surgery. Give the hospital enough time to review your information before travel. This guide helps you organise that conversation; it does not tell you to stop, start, replace or change the dose of any medicine.
Make one list the clinical team can read
Record the product name, strength shown on the label, how often you use it, why it was prescribed and the prescribing clinician if known. Photograph the box, label or prescription when spelling is uncertain. Keep the original name visible rather than guessing an English translation. Ask the hospital which language or supporting document it needs.
Include products used without a prescription
Add over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, herbal products, supplements, injections and products used occasionally. Do not leave something out because it feels natural or because you only use it sometimes. Include any known medicine allergies and describe the information you have about the reaction. The hospital decides which details need further assessment.
Request an individual plan, not a generic stopping schedule
A medicine may be treating an important ongoing condition. If the surgical team wants a change, ask which clinician will agree the plan and whether your usual doctor must be involved. Obtain instructions for the actual product and procedure. An online checklist or another traveller’s instructions cannot establish what you should take before your own operation.
Keep the list current until the appointment
Send the agreed records before travel and ask who will confirm receipt. If a prescription, dose or health condition changes afterward, send the update rather than assuming the first review still applies. Bring the records the hospital requests and keep a copy available offline. Ask whom to contact if instructions from different clinicians appear inconsistent.
Practical checklist
- Product names, strengths, frequency and reasons for use are recorded.
- Non-prescription products and occasional medicines are included.
- Known allergies and available reaction details are listed.
- The hospital has named the clinician responsible for medication instructions.
- Later changes are reported and the latest agreed instructions are available.
Questions before you decide
Should I stop supplements now?
This article cannot set a stopping schedule. Tell the treating team what you use and follow its individual instructions; do not make changes based on a general article.
What if I cannot remember the name?
Send a clear label, package or prescription photograph through the hospital’s agreed channel. Do not guess the product or replace its name with a similar one.
Is telling my coordinator enough?
Ask whether the information has reached the relevant hospital team and how its response will be confirmed. Passing on a list is different from receiving a clinical decision.
Further reading: NHS: preparing health and medicine information before surgery