Why is this patient ordered Famotidine for PID?

Students Student Assist

Published

Heres the sample of the CC and Hx. (THIS IS NOT A REAL PT, ITS A MANICAN IN SIM LAB, None the less I still have to act like its a real pt, I know not post real life med records online lol) anyways this pt has PID and a STD, she has a order for Famotidine, Insulin (She's a diabetic), Metronidazole, and Doxycycline... I understand the rationale behind all the meds on her MAR, except Famotidine... Why would she be on famotidine?

CC: Lower abdominal pain

Admission Dx: PID (pelvic inflammatory disease)

Other Problems:Dx: Diabetes(Dx 5 years ago), and a possible STI as indicative of thick, yellowish discharge.

Gender: F

Age: 25

Notes: Pt woke up 7 hours ago with lower abdominal pain, and Nausea & Vomiting.

[TABLE=class: table table-striped, width: 1170]

[TR]

[TH][/TH]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

Specializes in PICU, Sedation/Radiology, PACU.

It's pretty standard in many hospitals that inpatients be on an H2 blocker to reduce amount/acidity of stomach acid to protect the lining of the stomach and esophagus. Many factors associated with being the hospital- such as stress, lack of regular diet, medications, and vomiting, all create risk of stomach ulcers or bleeding. The pepcid helps mitigate that risk.

Specializes in NICU, RNC.

Ditto the above. It's Evidence Based Practice. Simply the stress of hospitalization has been shown to cause gastric ulceration in patients. Therefore, nearly every admitted patient is prescribed a PPI or H2 receptor blocker for ulcer prophylaxis.

AliNajaCat

1,035 Posts

Ditto the above. It's Evidence Based Practice. Simply the stress of hospitalization has been shown to cause gastric ulceration in patients. Therefore, nearly every admitted patient is prescribed a PPI or H2 receptor blocker for ulcer prophylaxis.

Gastric ulcers are not caused by stress, but by Helicobacter pylori or trauma (like by poorly-vented Salem sump tubes). Decreasing gastric acid secretion is, however, a good thing for people who might be prone to GERD when they're in bed.

OP, As you go along in school and move beyond mannikins to real people, you will find that many of them have more than one thing wrong. Perhaps they had a pre-existing illness before they had to come in for surgery, for example. Part of nursing school and learning to think like a nurse is learning to see the forest, not just the trees. And remember, there's a lot more in forests than just trees, and they're all part of the ecosystem.

+ Add a Comment