Patient/caregiver was educated on how to take Calcitonin as follows:

1. Take this medication as ordered by your physician. Do not change the dose and frequency on this medication without consulting your doctor. Take the medication dose for the duration prescribed without fail.
2. Take the medication dose at the same time, every day, to avoid forgetting the intake of medication. Taking the medication at regularly spaced intervals help maintain appropriate blood levels of calcitonin needed for desired benefit.
3. Upon oral administration, calcitonin could be easily destroyed in the intestines, thus compromising the therapeutic benefit and so, is administered via parenteral and nasal routes, with onset and duration of calcitonin activity differing based on the route of administration.
4. Parenteral calcitonin could be administered as shots via intravenous or intramuscular or subcutaneous routes. Before preparing a dose, check the vial for any discoloration or particulate material. If you note any discoloration or particulate material in the vial, do not use the vial and notify your physician or home health personnel regarding the same. Administer your shot via the prescribed route, as instructed by your health care provider. After use, dispose of all sharps into the sharps container, as instructed.
5. Nasal calcitonin could be administered as a spray, using calcitonin nasal pump. You can store the unused bottle of calcitonin in the refrigerator, making sure that the medication does not freeze. Once you start using the spray bottle, you can store the bottle at room temperature, making sure the medication is not exposed to excessive heat and/or light.
6. Do not forget to prime the calcitonin nasal spray pump once, before you start using a new bottle of calcitonin spray. Hold the new medication bottle upright and away from you and pump the new medication bottle several times, until you see a faint spray, when priming is complete and the bottle is ready for regular everyday use.
7. Each new calcitonin spray bottle will have total number of doses the bottle holds, mentioned on it (usually 30). Keep track of the day you started the new bottle and the doses you used, before throwing away the bottle, to prevent any wastage of medication. This can also help with avoiding continued use of the empty spray bottle, with consequent under dosing and compromised therapeutic benefit.
8. Before each use of the spray, clear the nostrils, by blowing the nose. Holding the head in an upright position, carefully insert the nozzle of the spray into one nostril. Press the spray pump towards the bottle once. Make sure that you do not deeply inhale while spraying. After use, wipe the nozzle with a clean tissue and cap it, to keep the nosepiece clean.
9. Blowing the nose immediately after using the spray can result in reduced absorption of the medication and consequently, compromise the therapeutic benefit. So, avoid blowing your nose for a few minutes after using the nasal spray.
10. One spray amounts to your usual daily dose. Spraying more than once could amount to overdose.
11. Keep track of the nostril used, so that, you can use the other nostril for the next dose. Continued used of only one nostril for calcitonin spray can result in increased dryness and discomfort of the nostril with formation of crusts and increased risk for nasal bleeding. Alternating the nostrils for daily dose of calcitonin spray can help reduce the chance for this risk.
12. Calcitonin can take some time to fairly adjust to your body and reach a therapeutic level in your blood, before producing the desired results. Do not discontinue taking the medication without your physician’s consult, as you failed to see the desired result immediately after taking the medication.
13. Periodical labs could be drawn and bone scans ordered, to evaluate the therapeutic benefit of calcitonin intake. Observe compliance with any lab draws ordered.
14. Your physician could change the dose of calcitonin, based on the results of labs ordered, therapeutic relief obtained or side-effects developed. So, maintain compliance with follow-up physician appointments, to update on the relief from symptoms. Be accommodative to the plan of dose changes, if need be, until you show an optimum response.
15. Before starting the calcitonin therapy, discuss with your physician regarding your history of nasal or sinus problems, such as, nasal/sinus deformities, episodes of nasal/sinus bleeding, and/or chronic inflammation/infection, if any. Also, discuss with your physician regarding all your medications and their safety with calcitonin.
16. Continue taking calcitonin as ordered, even if you experience relief from the symptoms. Abrupt discontinuation on calcitonin intake can result in continued weakening of the skeletal structures, recurrence of bone pain, reduced bone density, continued osteoporosis, and pathological fractures. Discontinuing the medication should only be on your physician’s recommendation.
17. If you miss a dose, try taking it at the earliest notice of noncompliance. If it is time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and take the dose scheduled. Do not take an extra dose to try making up for the missed dose. Notify your doctor and other health care personnel regarding your dose noncompliance.