What you nedd to know about a drug?

[cksl]

i know this is a topic that might have been posted plenty of times, but i just started taking pharmacology this semster. and since i'm on clinical now, i taught it would be good to take initiative to learn about some medicines, but the problem is what isessential to know about a drug? anyone can help? thanks!

[333]

I hope I understand your question correctly.

You need to know everything about any given medication. First and foremost you should "do no harm." Know why you should and should NOT give a particular medication. By understanding how a drug works it is easier to understand why they are contraindicated in some instances.

Was that what you were asking?

333

[shock-me-sane]

have you ever had to make drug cards? we have to have the following information on them:

generic name

brand name

classification

indications

action

side effects

adverse effects

route

dose

what to assess for

how/when to implement

patient teaching regarding drug

evaluation of the drugs effects

hope that helped a bit.

[suzy253, RN]

On clinicals when we're passing meds our instructor expects us to know the drug, of course, the class (i.e. diuretic), why the patient is getting it, a couple of the more common s/e, and sometimes how the drug works, like an ACE inhibitor/renin angiotensin.

[cksl]

thanks a lot for all your help. it was helpful.