DRUG CALCULATIONS FOR NURSES- A STEP BY STEP APPROACH

DRUG CALCULATIONS FOR NURSES- A STEP BY STEP APPROACH Pre-test xii Basics xii Per cent and percentages xiv Units and equivalences xiv Drug strengths or concentrations xiv Dosage calculations xv Moles and millimoles xvi Infusion rate calculations xvi Answers xvii 1 First principles 1 Objectives 1 Before we start 1 Sense of number and working from first principles 1 Estimation of answers 3 The ‘ONE unit’ rule 3 Checking your answer: does it seem reasonable? 5 Putting it all together 6 Minimizing errors 7 Part 1: Mathematics 9 2 Basics 9 Objectives 9 Introduction 11 Arithmetic symbols 11 Basic maths 12 Rules of arithmetic 22 Fractions and decimals 25 Roman numerals 35 Powers or exponentials 36 Using a calculator 38 Powers and calculators 42 Estimating answers 42