How to Fill Out a MAR

What a MAR is

A medication administration record (MAR) is a chart that shows, day by day, whether each scheduled dose was given. Family caregivers, home health aides and care homes use it so anyone on the next shift can see what already happened. It is different from a medication list (what should be taken) and from a medication log (a running diary of doses). A MAR is usually one month on a landscape page.

Fields on our printable MAR, explained

Header

• Person’s name and date of birth — so sheets cannot be mixed up
• Month and year — start a new MAR on the first of each month
• Allergies — printed where every caregiver will see them
• Doctor and pharmacy contacts — for questions between visits

Each medicine block

• Medicine name and dose — copy the pharmacy label wording
• Instructions — with food, do not crush, shake well, and similar notes
• Time rows — one row per scheduled time (morning, noon, evening, bedtime, or a specific clock time)
• Day columns 1–31 — one box per calendar day for that time row

Initials, codes and signatures

• Initials in a box — after you give the dose, write your initials in that day’s cell
• Codes when a dose is not given — this template uses R refused, H held, S sleeping, N not available, O other (explain in notes). Your agency may require different codes; follow theirs if they do.
• Signature key — each person who gives medicines signs once with their full name next to the initials they will use
• Notes — reason for a held dose, PRN reason, side effects, or a call to the nurse

Step-by-step: filling it out

1. Open the free MAR template and add each medicine with its dose and times.
2. Print in landscape, or download PDF, Word or Excel. Fill the month, allergies and signature key before the first dose of the month.
3. At each dose time, give the medicine, then write your initials in the matching day box. Do not initial ahead of time.
4. If the dose is not given, write a code and add a short note. Contact the nurse or prescriber when your care plan requires it.
5. For as-needed (PRN) medicines, use the PRN row: write the time and your initials when you give it, and note why.
6. Keep completed MARs with the person’s records. Start a fresh sheet next month.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Initialing before the dose is actually given
• Leaving a blank box with no initials and no code
• Using initials that are not on the signature key
• Copying an old dose after the prescription changed
• Mixing two people’s medicines on one MAR — each person needs their own sheet

Licensed facilities often must use an employer- or state-approved form. Families and small care settings can use this free template as a clear home record. It is an organizing tool, not a substitute for clinical training or facility policy.