Question

Case Studies, Medications

You are a nurse caring for a 47-year-old patient who is homeless. He is admitted to your unit two to three times per year. His medical history includes diabetes mellitus (type 2), hypertension, and alcoholism. After extensive hygienic interventions (to decrease his body odor, wash his hair, and perform oral care), you complete your assessment and find that he is not in compliance with any of his dietary and medication instructions from his last admission.

Considering his history, what types of medications would you expect to be ordered?

Outline the patient variables that could impact the action of these medications.

Indicate the components of an acceptable medication order.

Describe acceptable practice when nurses are ordered to dispense a medication with which they are unfamiliar.

How would you identify that patient before dispensing his ordered medication?

What measures would you take if the patient refused his oral medications because he didn’t like the taste?

You are a nurse preparing a medication safety presentation for your unit’s monthly staff meeting. The focus of the presentation is avoiding medication errors and the necessary due diligence for every member of the nursing staff. (

When can medication errors occur?

Which classes of medications are more typically connected to medication errors?

Outline the appropriate label check opportunities.

What “rights” should be monitored to ensure accurate medication administration?

Describe how often nurses should check medication data to protect their patients.

Indicate the additional information you would expect to document upon administering a narcotic medication.

What steps are pertinent to administering medications via GI tube to maintain patient comfort and safety?

Outline precautions necessary to prevent needlesticks.

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diabetis mellitus, hypertension and alcoholism

Answer 1

Non-comliance can have a major effect on treatment outcomes and provide major adverse clinical consequences. non-compliance directly associated with poor treatment outcomes in patient with diabetes,hypertension, it causes poorly controlled diabetes and hypertension that increase their risk of complications.low-cost antihypertensive, anticholesterol, and antihyperglycemic medications help improve the adherence that reduces the burden
of chronic illness.health care professional should be aware of patients' economic situation in the treatment regimen.
patient poor knowledge,health literacy, smoking, and alcohol intake factors increase their risk of hypertension and diabetes, poor knowledge about medication, risk factors, side effects, duration of medication, poor dietary followup because of the difficulty of changing their dietary habits, lack of income, social factors, cost of therapy, disease factors cause poor health status impact the action of these medications.
complete medication order should include patient full name, date, time of the order, name of the medications
ordered dosage, route of administration, form of the medication, time and frequency of administration, physician signature, etc.
A nursing practice that nurses are never to administer a drug they are unfamiliar with. nurses have policies on medication administration. be clear with medication order, five rights of medication administration to practice safely. never administer unfamiliar medications, first understand the patient condition, be familiar with dosage, therapeutic effects, adverse actions and interactions with other medications.