Administration of Medications Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Administration of Medications - Research Paper Example For instance, intravenous (IV) furosemide directed too hurriedly can have adverse effect of causing deafness. In the same way, too much of topical steroids applied on the body can cause tapering of the skin and various dangerous side-effects. In the opinion of Shane (2009), medication administration can be considered as the â€Å"sharp edge† in the medication-use process, because errors occurred at the prescribing, dispensing, or transcribing stages, if not detected, will result in the patient receiving the medication in error. There are two factors that decide whether or not the medication will meet the anticipated site of action in the body of the patient. They are; The bioavailability of the drug: - Bioavailability is the amount of administrated medication that can affect the systematic circulation and thereby available for circulation to the anticipated site of action. Routes of administration: - The routes of administration consist of the method of carrying out the admini stration of drug. For the effective drug therapy and desired patient outcome, it is essential to recognize the advantages, implications, and disadvantages of the routes of administration. The administration of medication is the prime responsibility of the nurse. The procedure of administering medication involves supporting the patient with a substance given, medication, or deterrence of a clinical illness or situation. The main function of medication administration refers to the specific and absolute delivery of a medication to the patient. The nursing staff must be familiar with the large set of practices in order to attain safe and effective patient outcomes and to organize for and analyze the outcome of medication administration. The first step of medication administration starts with the prescription written by the physician and passes through different channels including nurses, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants, etc. Nursing Responsibilities in Administration of Me dication Primarily, the nurse while administrating medication should keep in mind the five rights of medications; right patient, right drug, right time, right dose, and right route of administration (Washington Poison Center, 2008). The nurses must be familiar with the responsibilities and should be duty bound to carry out these responsibilities while administering medication. The nurse should make sure that no medication is given to the patient without an accurate clinical order from a doctor clearly specifying the medication, dose, route, and schedule. To ensure the homogeneity, the medication in the solution should be shaken well before it is parted from the main drug container. In the same way, extra care should be applied while extracting drugs from large containers, and rim of the container must be wiped after taking solutions or suspensions. While administering medication, the nurse must make sure that the drugs are kept in order in a proper place, ensuring that they are not freely accessible to patients or the public. The medications must be preserved well from air, light, and moisture and only those labeled properly must be maintained in the storage. Each medication should be carefully examined regarding its storage, refrigeration and expiration dates. Hughes and Blegen (2008) point out that restricted medication like narcotics should be preserved in lockers and proper records must be maintained on the use of such medication. Nurse must be very careful while dealing with the drugs, knowing exactly the abbreviations of the mediations as well as their action, dosage, indication, route, effects, etc. It is important not to touch drugs, especially tablets and pills