CHAPTER 35 – Medication Admin pg 798
Generic name – not capitalized, often contains prefix/suffix that helps identify the drug class
Medication standards and regulations – enacted to ensure uniform quality and predictable
effects
Controlled substances – types of medications that have government regulated manufacturing,
prescribing, and dispensing requirements
** If a controlled drug needs to be wasted, two licensed clinical staff members must witness the
appropriate disposal of the substance and document the wasting**
Pharmacokinetics – the study of how a medication enters the body, moves through the body,
and ultimately leaves the body
• Therapeutic effect (intended effect) – the desired result or action of a medication
• Effectiveness is influenced by the dose, route of admin, frequency, function of
metabolizing organs (liver/kidneys), age of pt
, • Medication actions depend on absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion
properties
• TO achieve therapeutic effect, medication MUST: be taken into the body, be absorbed
and distributed in the cells/tissues, alter physiologic functioning
Pharmacodynamics – is the process in
which a medication interacts with the body’s cells to produce a biologic response
Half-life: the expected time it takes for the blood concentration to measure ½ of the original
drug dose due to the drug metabolism and excretion. EXAMPLE: If a drug has a half-life of 12
hours, 50% of the drug’s original dose remains in the bloodstream 12 hours after administration
Onset of action: the time the body takes to respond to a drug after administration (affected by
administration route, drug formulation, and pharmacokinetic factors)
REVIEW PG 802 – DIVERSITY CONSIDERATIONS (women have slower gastric motility than men,
which affects plasma concentration and absorption of oral meds) (glomerular filtration rate and
renal blood flow are higher in men than women, which contributes to faster clearance
Side effects – predictable but unwanted and sometimes unavoidable reactions to medications
Adverse effects – severe, unintended, unwanted and often unpredictable drug reactions. May
occur after one dose or over time. MED IS IMMEDIATELY STOPPED
Toxic effects – result from medication overdose or buildup of medication in the blood due to
impaired metabolism and excretion
Allergic reactions- unpredictable immune responses to medications
,Anaphylactic reaction – MEDS IMMEDIATELY STOPPED, administer epinephrine, IV fluids,
steroids, and antihistamines while providing resp support
Idiosyncratic reaction – an unpredictable pt response to medication, overresponse, under
response, or abnormal reaction to the medication
MEDICATION INTERACTIONS
• Synergistic effect occurs when the combined effect is greater than the effect of either
substance if taken alone. May be sought out by provider – example: a pt with
hypertension may receive a diuretic and vasodilator to achieve a greater
antihypertensive response than would be achieved by either drug alone
• Antagonism: occurs when the drug effect is decreased by taking the drug with another
substance. Example – antibiotics may lessen the effect of birth control
Administering parenteral medications
• Drug incompatibility
• Precipitation
• Adverse chemical reaction
Medication reconciliation – confirming which medications are still being taken/not taken,
grouping together meds prescribed from different facilities
Nonprescription and Prescription Meds
• Record vitamin use in the client history
• Herbal supplements: action in the body
similar to prescription meds, may not
tell providers about use
• MAR (medication administration
record): specific documentation is
needed when a medication is not
administered as prescribed
• Nurses need to know why a medication
is ordered for certain times and whether
the times can be altered
, PER GALEN: Give ONE Med at a time
Generic name – not capitalized, often contains prefix/suffix that helps identify the drug class
Medication standards and regulations – enacted to ensure uniform quality and predictable
effects
Controlled substances – types of medications that have government regulated manufacturing,
prescribing, and dispensing requirements
** If a controlled drug needs to be wasted, two licensed clinical staff members must witness the
appropriate disposal of the substance and document the wasting**
Pharmacokinetics – the study of how a medication enters the body, moves through the body,
and ultimately leaves the body
• Therapeutic effect (intended effect) – the desired result or action of a medication
• Effectiveness is influenced by the dose, route of admin, frequency, function of
metabolizing organs (liver/kidneys), age of pt
, • Medication actions depend on absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion
properties
• TO achieve therapeutic effect, medication MUST: be taken into the body, be absorbed
and distributed in the cells/tissues, alter physiologic functioning
Pharmacodynamics – is the process in
which a medication interacts with the body’s cells to produce a biologic response
Half-life: the expected time it takes for the blood concentration to measure ½ of the original
drug dose due to the drug metabolism and excretion. EXAMPLE: If a drug has a half-life of 12
hours, 50% of the drug’s original dose remains in the bloodstream 12 hours after administration
Onset of action: the time the body takes to respond to a drug after administration (affected by
administration route, drug formulation, and pharmacokinetic factors)
REVIEW PG 802 – DIVERSITY CONSIDERATIONS (women have slower gastric motility than men,
which affects plasma concentration and absorption of oral meds) (glomerular filtration rate and
renal blood flow are higher in men than women, which contributes to faster clearance
Side effects – predictable but unwanted and sometimes unavoidable reactions to medications
Adverse effects – severe, unintended, unwanted and often unpredictable drug reactions. May
occur after one dose or over time. MED IS IMMEDIATELY STOPPED
Toxic effects – result from medication overdose or buildup of medication in the blood due to
impaired metabolism and excretion
Allergic reactions- unpredictable immune responses to medications
,Anaphylactic reaction – MEDS IMMEDIATELY STOPPED, administer epinephrine, IV fluids,
steroids, and antihistamines while providing resp support
Idiosyncratic reaction – an unpredictable pt response to medication, overresponse, under
response, or abnormal reaction to the medication
MEDICATION INTERACTIONS
• Synergistic effect occurs when the combined effect is greater than the effect of either
substance if taken alone. May be sought out by provider – example: a pt with
hypertension may receive a diuretic and vasodilator to achieve a greater
antihypertensive response than would be achieved by either drug alone
• Antagonism: occurs when the drug effect is decreased by taking the drug with another
substance. Example – antibiotics may lessen the effect of birth control
Administering parenteral medications
• Drug incompatibility
• Precipitation
• Adverse chemical reaction
Medication reconciliation – confirming which medications are still being taken/not taken,
grouping together meds prescribed from different facilities
Nonprescription and Prescription Meds
• Record vitamin use in the client history
• Herbal supplements: action in the body
similar to prescription meds, may not
tell providers about use
• MAR (medication administration
record): specific documentation is
needed when a medication is not
administered as prescribed
• Nurses need to know why a medication
is ordered for certain times and whether
the times can be altered
, PER GALEN: Give ONE Med at a time
