FROM ORDER TO OUTCOME: A+
STRATEGY FOR CHAPTER 31 –
MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION
EXCELLENCE (2026/2027)
A nurse is administering medications to a 4-year-old patient.
After he or she explains which medications are being given, the
mother states, "I don't remember my child having that
medication before." What is the nurse's next action?
a. Give the medications
b. Identify the patient using two patient identifiers
c. Withhold the medications and verify the medication orders
d. Provide medication education to the mother to help her
better understand her child's medications - THE CORRECT ANSWER-c
Do not ignore patient or caregiver concerns; always verify
orders whenever a medication is questioned before
administering it.
A patient is transitioning from the hospital to the home
environment. A home care referral is obtained. What is a
priority in relation to safe medication administration for the
discharge nurse?
,a. Set up the follow-up appointments with the physician for the
patient.
b. Ensure that someone will provide housekeeping for the
patient at home.
c. Ensure that the home care agency is aware of medication and
health teaching needs.
d. Make sure that the patient's family knows how to safely bathe
him or her and provide mouth care. - THE CORRECT ANSWER-c
A nursing responsibility is to collaborate with community
resources when patients have home care needs or difficulty
understanding their medications.
A nursing student takes a patient's antibiotic to his room. The
patient asks the nursing student what it is and why he should
take it. Which information does the nursing student include
when replying to the patient?
a. Only the patient's physician can give this information.
b. The student provides the name of the medication and a
description of its desired effect.
c. Information about medications is confidential and cannot be
shared.
d. He has to speak with his assigned nurse about this. - THE
CORRECT ANSWER-b
Patients need to know information about their medications so
they can take them correctly and safely.
, The nurse is administering a sustained-release capsule to a new
patient. The patient insists that he cannot swallow pills. What is
the nurse's next best course of action?
a. Ask the prescriber to change the order
b. Crush the pill with a mortar and pestle
c. Hide the capsule in a piece of solid food
d. Open the capsule and sprinkle it over pudding - THE CORRECT
ANSWER-a
Enteric-coated or sustained-release capsules should not be
crushed; the nurse needs to contact the prescriber to change the
medication to a form that is liquid or can be crushed.
The nurse takes a medication to a patient, and the patient tells
him or her to take it away because she is not going to take it.
What is the nurse's next action?
a. Ask the patient's reason for refusal
b. Explain that she must take the medication
c. Take the medication away and chart the patient's refusal
d. Tell the patient that her physician knows what is best for her -
THE CORRECT ANSWER-a
When patients refuse a medication, first ask why they are
refusing it.
STRATEGY FOR CHAPTER 31 –
MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION
EXCELLENCE (2026/2027)
A nurse is administering medications to a 4-year-old patient.
After he or she explains which medications are being given, the
mother states, "I don't remember my child having that
medication before." What is the nurse's next action?
a. Give the medications
b. Identify the patient using two patient identifiers
c. Withhold the medications and verify the medication orders
d. Provide medication education to the mother to help her
better understand her child's medications - THE CORRECT ANSWER-c
Do not ignore patient or caregiver concerns; always verify
orders whenever a medication is questioned before
administering it.
A patient is transitioning from the hospital to the home
environment. A home care referral is obtained. What is a
priority in relation to safe medication administration for the
discharge nurse?
,a. Set up the follow-up appointments with the physician for the
patient.
b. Ensure that someone will provide housekeeping for the
patient at home.
c. Ensure that the home care agency is aware of medication and
health teaching needs.
d. Make sure that the patient's family knows how to safely bathe
him or her and provide mouth care. - THE CORRECT ANSWER-c
A nursing responsibility is to collaborate with community
resources when patients have home care needs or difficulty
understanding their medications.
A nursing student takes a patient's antibiotic to his room. The
patient asks the nursing student what it is and why he should
take it. Which information does the nursing student include
when replying to the patient?
a. Only the patient's physician can give this information.
b. The student provides the name of the medication and a
description of its desired effect.
c. Information about medications is confidential and cannot be
shared.
d. He has to speak with his assigned nurse about this. - THE
CORRECT ANSWER-b
Patients need to know information about their medications so
they can take them correctly and safely.
, The nurse is administering a sustained-release capsule to a new
patient. The patient insists that he cannot swallow pills. What is
the nurse's next best course of action?
a. Ask the prescriber to change the order
b. Crush the pill with a mortar and pestle
c. Hide the capsule in a piece of solid food
d. Open the capsule and sprinkle it over pudding - THE CORRECT
ANSWER-a
Enteric-coated or sustained-release capsules should not be
crushed; the nurse needs to contact the prescriber to change the
medication to a form that is liquid or can be crushed.
The nurse takes a medication to a patient, and the patient tells
him or her to take it away because she is not going to take it.
What is the nurse's next action?
a. Ask the patient's reason for refusal
b. Explain that she must take the medication
c. Take the medication away and chart the patient's refusal
d. Tell the patient that her physician knows what is best for her -
THE CORRECT ANSWER-a
When patients refuse a medication, first ask why they are
refusing it.
