lOMoARcPSD|26582732
Exam 1 Review for 318
Introduction to Nursing Pharmacology,
Terminology, and Medication Calculation
Ch 1,2,5,10,11
1.1 Describe basic concepts of medication safety
Follow the same process every time you administer medications:
● Obtain patient’s vitals and recent lab work, consider pt’s current physical condition before administering drug
● Perform the 6 rights of medications; perform a focused assessment on the body system based on the patient’s
chief complaint
● Verify orders, question order if it turns to be harmful for the pt
● Clarify orders- if any information is missing from the drug order (such as dosage or route), the nurse needs to
contact HCP first
1.2 What is the basic terminology and concepts of pharmacology? Define
● Pharmacology - The study of medication/drugs. Drugs are any chemicals that affect the physiologic process of
a living organism.
● Pharmacology definition
0 The study of the manner in which the function of living systems is affected by chemical substances
● Drug definition
0 Any chemical substance other than those required for normal sustenance which produces a biological
effect
● Contraindication
0 A condition that makes a particular treatment or procedure inadvisable; may be absolute or relative
● First pass effect
0 A drug may be completely metabolized by the liver on the first pass through the GI tract ○ Only
applies to oral drugs
○ The reason why oral drugs have higher doses than IV
● Plateau
0 When the amount of drug eliminated between doses equals the dose administered; average drug levels
will remain constant and plateau will have been reached
● Potency
0 Refers to the amount of drug we must give to elicit an effect---says nothing about maximal efficacy
● Agonists
0 Activate receptors; have a high affinity and high intrinsic activity; make things in body work better,
faster, stronger
● Antagonists
0 Prevent receptor activation, must be agonist present in order for the antagonist to have any effect; stop
processes in the body from working/diminish them
● Partial agonist
0 Only has moderate intrinsic activity
● Half-Life
- Is the time it takes for the amount of drugs in the body to be reduced by half
*Look at terms at the end of this document*
1.3 . Identify the various routes of medication administration
I. Oral (tablets, capsules, liquids, suspensions, and elixirs).
A. Liquid forms include elixirs, emulsions, and suspensions.
> elixirs are sweetened, hydro-alcoholic liquids used in the preparation of oral liquid medications
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Exam 1 Review for 318
> emulsions are a mixture of two liquids that are not mutually soluble
> suspensions are liquids in which particles are mixed BUT NOT dissolved
**you must read labels to know if diluting or shaking is needed
b. Sublingual- under the tongue (must remain there until absorbed)
c. Buccal- between the cheek and gum (must remain there until absorbed)
● Transdermal- medication is stored in patch and placed on the skin to be absorbed. Never cut the patch in half
● Topical medications are often applied to the skin by painting or spreading the medication over an area and
applying a moist dressing OR leaving the area exposed to air. Always wear gloves when applying topical
medications
● Instillation- liquid medications typically administered as drops, ointments, or sprays in the following forms
( review pg. 88):
➔ Eyedrops
➔ Eye ointments
➔ Eardrops
➔ Nose drops and sprays
● Inhalation- Metered-dose inhalers are handheld devices used to deliver a number of asthma and bronchitis
medications
MDIS drugs act faster than oral drugs and have less side effects since the drug goes directly to the lungs
Spacers are devices used to enhance medication delivery from MDI.
Nebulizer is a device that changes a liquid to fine mist or aerosol and has the ability to reach the lower, smaller
airways
Ensure the patient is in semi-Fowler or high Fowler position when giving these MDI or nebulizer
● Nasogastric and gastrostomy tubes
● Suppositories
● Parenteral forms- Methods of parenteral administration include intradermal, subcutaneous, intramuscular,
Ζtrack technique, and intravenous administration. A description of each follows with special considerations
noted for the pediatric patient.
1.4 Apply principles of dimensional analysis to calculate medication dosages
● Method 3: Dimensional Analysis - Dimensional analysis (DA) is a calculation method known as units and
conversions. The D, H, and V are still used in DA. The advantage of DA is that all the steps for calculating
drug dosages are conducted in one equation without having to remember various formulas. However,
conversion factors (CF) still need to be memorized.
○ Steps for Dimensional Analysis
■ 1. Identify the unit/form (tablet, capsule, ml) of the drug to be calculated. Place this unit/form to
one side of the equal sign (=). This is your desired unit/form.
■ 2. Determine the known dose and unit/form from the drug label. Place this on the other side of
the equal sign.
■ 3. Continue with additional fractions using a multiplication operation between each fraction
until all but that one unit/format you want is eliminated.
■ 4 . Multiply the numerators and multiply the denominators.
■ 5 . Solve for x (the unknown unit/form ).
○ EXAMPLE:
■ Order: Amoxicillin 500 mg PO q8h
■ Available: 250 mg per capsule
= =
○ EXAMPLE:
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Exam 1 Review for 318
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Exam 1 Review for 318
Introduction to Nursing Pharmacology,
Terminology, and Medication Calculation
Ch 1,2,5,10,11
1.1 Describe basic concepts of medication safety
Follow the same process every time you administer medications:
● Obtain patient’s vitals and recent lab work, consider pt’s current physical condition before administering drug
● Perform the 6 rights of medications; perform a focused assessment on the body system based on the patient’s
chief complaint
● Verify orders, question order if it turns to be harmful for the pt
● Clarify orders- if any information is missing from the drug order (such as dosage or route), the nurse needs to
contact HCP first
1.2 What is the basic terminology and concepts of pharmacology? Define
● Pharmacology - The study of medication/drugs. Drugs are any chemicals that affect the physiologic process of
a living organism.
● Pharmacology definition
0 The study of the manner in which the function of living systems is affected by chemical substances
● Drug definition
0 Any chemical substance other than those required for normal sustenance which produces a biological
effect
● Contraindication
0 A condition that makes a particular treatment or procedure inadvisable; may be absolute or relative
● First pass effect
0 A drug may be completely metabolized by the liver on the first pass through the GI tract ○ Only
applies to oral drugs
○ The reason why oral drugs have higher doses than IV
● Plateau
0 When the amount of drug eliminated between doses equals the dose administered; average drug levels
will remain constant and plateau will have been reached
● Potency
0 Refers to the amount of drug we must give to elicit an effect---says nothing about maximal efficacy
● Agonists
0 Activate receptors; have a high affinity and high intrinsic activity; make things in body work better,
faster, stronger
● Antagonists
0 Prevent receptor activation, must be agonist present in order for the antagonist to have any effect; stop
processes in the body from working/diminish them
● Partial agonist
0 Only has moderate intrinsic activity
● Half-Life
- Is the time it takes for the amount of drugs in the body to be reduced by half
*Look at terms at the end of this document*
1.3 . Identify the various routes of medication administration
I. Oral (tablets, capsules, liquids, suspensions, and elixirs).
A. Liquid forms include elixirs, emulsions, and suspensions.
> elixirs are sweetened, hydro-alcoholic liquids used in the preparation of oral liquid medications
Page Number 1
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, lOMoARcPSD|26582732
Exam 1 Review for 318
> emulsions are a mixture of two liquids that are not mutually soluble
> suspensions are liquids in which particles are mixed BUT NOT dissolved
**you must read labels to know if diluting or shaking is needed
b. Sublingual- under the tongue (must remain there until absorbed)
c. Buccal- between the cheek and gum (must remain there until absorbed)
● Transdermal- medication is stored in patch and placed on the skin to be absorbed. Never cut the patch in half
● Topical medications are often applied to the skin by painting or spreading the medication over an area and
applying a moist dressing OR leaving the area exposed to air. Always wear gloves when applying topical
medications
● Instillation- liquid medications typically administered as drops, ointments, or sprays in the following forms
( review pg. 88):
➔ Eyedrops
➔ Eye ointments
➔ Eardrops
➔ Nose drops and sprays
● Inhalation- Metered-dose inhalers are handheld devices used to deliver a number of asthma and bronchitis
medications
MDIS drugs act faster than oral drugs and have less side effects since the drug goes directly to the lungs
Spacers are devices used to enhance medication delivery from MDI.
Nebulizer is a device that changes a liquid to fine mist or aerosol and has the ability to reach the lower, smaller
airways
Ensure the patient is in semi-Fowler or high Fowler position when giving these MDI or nebulizer
● Nasogastric and gastrostomy tubes
● Suppositories
● Parenteral forms- Methods of parenteral administration include intradermal, subcutaneous, intramuscular,
Ζtrack technique, and intravenous administration. A description of each follows with special considerations
noted for the pediatric patient.
1.4 Apply principles of dimensional analysis to calculate medication dosages
● Method 3: Dimensional Analysis - Dimensional analysis (DA) is a calculation method known as units and
conversions. The D, H, and V are still used in DA. The advantage of DA is that all the steps for calculating
drug dosages are conducted in one equation without having to remember various formulas. However,
conversion factors (CF) still need to be memorized.
○ Steps for Dimensional Analysis
■ 1. Identify the unit/form (tablet, capsule, ml) of the drug to be calculated. Place this unit/form to
one side of the equal sign (=). This is your desired unit/form.
■ 2. Determine the known dose and unit/form from the drug label. Place this on the other side of
the equal sign.
■ 3. Continue with additional fractions using a multiplication operation between each fraction
until all but that one unit/format you want is eliminated.
■ 4 . Multiply the numerators and multiply the denominators.
■ 5 . Solve for x (the unknown unit/form ).
○ EXAMPLE:
■ Order: Amoxicillin 500 mg PO q8h
■ Available: 250 mg per capsule
= =
○ EXAMPLE:
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Exam 1 Review for 318
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