Deck 5: Medication Errors: Preventing and Responding

Question 1

Digoxin is available in 0.125-mg tablet form. Convert this dose to microgram strength. (do not round) _______

Answer 1

125 mcg
One mg equals 1000 mcg. To convert 0.125 mg to mcg, multiply by 1000 to equal 125 mcg, or move the decimal point to the right three spaces.

Question 2

The nurse is reviewing medication errors. Which situation is an example of a medication error?

A) A patient refuses her morning medications.
B) A patient receives a double dose of a medication because the nurse did not cut the pill in half.
C) A patient develops hives after having started an IV antibiotic 24 hours earlier.
D) A patient complains of severe pain still present 60 minutes after a pain medication was given.

Answer 2

A patient receives a double dose of a medication because the nurse did not cut the pill in half.

Question 3

When taking a telephone order for a medication, which action by the nurse is most appropriate?

A) Verify the order with the charge nurse.
B) Call back the prescriber to review the order.
C) Repeat the order to the prescriber before hanging up the telephone.
D) Ask the pharmacist to double-check the order.

Answer 3

Repeat the order to the prescriber before hanging up the telephone.

Question 4

Levothyroxine is available in 75-mcg tablet form. Convert this dose to milligram strength. (do not round) _______

Question 5

When reviewing pediatric medication administration, the nurse recognizes that which type of medication error is most common with children?

A) Oral medication administration errors
B) Wrong route errors
C) Incorrect dosage form errors
D) Dosing errors

Question 6

During a period of time when the computerized medication order system was down, the prescriber wrote admission orders, and the nurse is transcribing them. The nurse is having difficulty transcribing one order because of the prescriber's handwriting. Which is the best action for the nurse to take at this time?

A) Ask a colleague what the order says.
B) Contact the prescriber to clarify the order.
C) Wait until the prescriber makes rounds again to clarify the order.
D) Ask the patient what medications he takes at home.

Question 7

When given a scheduled morning medication, the patient states, "I haven't seen that pill before. Are you sure it's correct?" The nurse checks the medication administration record and verifies that it is listed. Which is the nurse's best response?

A) "It's listed here on the medication sheet, so you should take it."
B) "Go ahead and take it, and then I'll check with your doctor about it."
C) "It wouldn't be listed here if it were not ordered for you!"
D) "Let me check on the order first before you take it."

Question 8

The nurse can prevent medication errors by following which principles?

A) Assess for allergies after giving medications.
B) Use two patient identifiers before giving medications.
C) Always following the rights of medication administration.
D) Minimize the use of verbal and telephone orders.
E) Use trade names instead of generic names to avoid confusion.

Question 9

During morning medication administration, the nurse discovered an error on the electronic MAR before the medication was given. Which action by the nurse is appropriate for this "near-miss?"

A) Correct the MAR error but say nothing because nothing happened.
B) Notify the pharmacy about the error they almost caused.
C) Report the near-miss using the facility's recommended protocol, and correct the error on the MAR.
D) Report the near-miss to the next shift before the next dose is due.

Question 10

The nurse is reviewing a list of verbal medication orders. Which is the proper notation of the dose of the drug ordered?

A) Levothyroxine.75 mg
B) Levothyroxine.750 mg
C) Levothyroxine 0.75 mg
D) Levothyroxine 0.750 mg