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B) Drug dosage. For some drugs the dosage required is calculated on a body weight basis. Body weight is measured in kilograms (kg) and so this dose is usually quoted as mg per kg. Other drugs (particularly cytotoxins) are prescribed in terms of the patient’s body surface area, which is obtained from nomograms.
Drug dosage calculations are required when the amount of medication ordered (or desired) is different from what is available on hand for the nurse to administer. Formula: Amount DESIRED (D) X QUANTITY (Q) = Y (Tablets Required) Amount on HAND (H)
23 lip 2021 · In the universal formula (or “desired over have method”), the desired amount (D) is the dose prescribed and the amount on hand (H) or the amount you “have” is the available dose or concentration. The quantity (Q) is the form and amount in which the drug is supplied (i.e. tablet, capsule, liquid).
Determine the drug dose for body weight by multiplying them together. Use your preferred dosage calculation method (formula, ratio proportion, or dimensional analysis) to solve for the dose of the drug to be administered to the client. Example: Ordered: Amoxicillin 10 mg per kg orally QID (four times a day) Available: Amoxicillin 125 mg/5 mL
Follow these four steps to easily calculate your patient's accurate drug dosage. Find out what's in your I.V. bottle (drug concentration or number of mL of fluid). Determine in which units your drug is measured (units/hour, mg/hour, or mcg/kg/minute).
In current nursing practice, the need to calculate drug dosages is not uncommon. These calculations have to be performed competently and accurately to ensure that the nurse – and more importantly the patient – is not put at risk. This book provides an aid to the basics of mathematics and drug calculations.
Example 1: The doctor orders 90 milligrams of liquid cough syrup. The liquid cough syrup has a label that reads 120 milligrams (mg for short) in 5 milliliters (or mL for short). How much cough syrup should the nurse give to the patient? Given: D = 90 mg. H = 120 mg. Q = 5 mL.
