Meds you hate to give....

Updated:   Published

What are the top medications that you hate to give and why?

Mine is Amphotericin B (called "Ampho-terrible" at my hospital).

Anything that can't mix with Normal Saline makes me nervous. It makes me wonder what's going to happen when it gets into the vein--isn't blood a fairly salty environment?

Factor 7 is a clotting factor which can be delivered intavenously in cases of severe bleeding during open heart surgery, trauma, DIC, ect. We use it alot in the Norwood procedures because of the bleeding which can happen in pediatric patients from being on the heart-lung machine and high doses of heparin. If protamine and thrombin aren't working, it's the next thing.

iv phenergan should be banned!

iv cardiac anything makes my knee's a little weak:uhoh3: !!!

IM anything scares me to death period! :uhoh21:

Specializes in Emergency.

I'll go with kayexelate , and Bicillin LA

Specializes in Neuro ICU, Neuro/Trauma stepdown.
:uhoh3: okay guys, i'm 6 months from graduation and i am scared now!! what is it that you do when you are giving these 'scary' drugs and what is it that i should be prepared to do? :uhoh21:

Mostly it is important to know what you expect from the medicine before you give it, pay attention while you are giving it and if it says slow IV go sllloooowwww. As a brilliant instructor of mine once said "You can always give them more but you can't take any back!" (some things can be reversed if there is any patient left to reverse it in) :o Always better to be safe than sorry, and by the way be careful of where you are standing when Charcoal, enemas, or anything that a patient is likely to barf is given:) Particular

OK fellow nurses, I am with you on some of these meds. I hate giving Nubain, seems like the patient always ends up worse (sweaty, low B/P, just feeling overall worse!)

I don't like giving phenergan to any elder person, it just means they are going to get totally confused!

Does anybody have an opinion about Tridil? We have to use this stuff now for nausea because the hospital got a better price - but no real savings because the time involved in titrating. I say bring back the zofran!

Specializes in Corrections, Cardiac, Hospice.

Tridil, for nausea? Why would you use a nitroglycerin for nausea? I am confused.

Specializes in ICU.
Prevacid via peg tube. Those little hyprophobic balls never go down. Why they don't use a liquid substittue in my hospital baffles all.

10ml of NaHCO3 will dissolve the lansoprazole granules in about 60 seconds and works well.

The Pharmacists also claim 30ml of apple juice will do the same thing, but we've tried and let it sit for 30 minutes and it didn't do anything. Maybe the juice has to be warm; we didn't try that.

Regarding Promod, a lot of nurses have trouble with this and it baffles me. Use 30 or 60 ml of hot water and stir. It is well dissolved and won't clog your tubes. Then, either add cold water (to prevent thermal injury) or just let it cool. Our facility recently switched to ProStat (a liquid protein supplement) because it is flavored and patients will take it better PO. To give it via the NGT, you have to dilute it because it is a tad thick.

I hate when my MAR says, "xxx cream, apply topically to affected areas QD" and my patient is confused. Invariable, I'll check the patient and won't see any area that look like they could use some whatever cream. By the time I track down another nurse who had the patient before and can tell me where it goes, I've wasted a huge amount of time. It's irritating and happens all the time.

1. Adenosine, definitely. I don't really care for the flatline, thank you!

2. Demerol/phenergan combo. Wigs many old people right out.

Specializes in Emergency Room.

I'd have to agree with bicillin. Not only does it feel like you are injecting cream into someone's butt, you have to do it twice!

Remember theophylline drips? These people were buzzzzzed. had to give them something to relax or they couldn't sleep at all.

We used to have people on the med/surg floor for corneal transplants. About 2 hours preop (if I remember right), we would have to start giving eye gtts. Doesn't sound bad, but three different eye gtts, each q 15 mintes, and you had to wait 5 minutes between drops. If you do the math, this turns out to be every 5 mintues until they went for surgery. You'd just drop to your knees and say Halleluja!!!!!!!!!!!!! when they left. (you were taking care of 7 other patients in between the q 5 minute eye gtts)

I also agree, giving any med into any orifice of any kid under the age of about 5 or 6.

also, pepcid iv. irks me to have to dilute it.

anything that has to be titrated.

Specializes in OB, lactation.

About Mucomyst-

I'm a student so maybe all of you already do this, but when I had to give it in my last rotation the RN got me to inject it into a juice (the kind with the aluminum foil top) and then stab through the aluminum foil with a straw for the pt to drink - no one has to really smell it that way.

Specializes in Internal Medicine Unit.
About Mucomyst-

I'm a student so maybe all of you already do this, but when I had to give it in my last rotation the RN got me to inject it into a juice (the kind with the aluminum foil top) and then stab through the aluminum foil with a straw for the pt to drink - no one has to really smell it that way.

:wink2: Thanks! I haven't given it, but we've had patients on our unit that had orders for it. I'll use this tip when it comes my turn. We had a nurse drop a bottle in the med room a while back...took a while for the smell to disperse:bluecry1:

+ Join the Discussion