ABSTRACT
The administration of medicines is a major part of nursing care in various settings. It is important that nurses understand the effect different drugs have in the body.
Not only should newly registered nurses have a basic knowledge of pharmacology, it is essential that nurse prescribers do as well. Nurse prescribers will have to choose which drug to prescribe, and what is most appropriate for the patient – factors such as age (especially the extremes of life), comorbidity, concurrent illness (e.g. dehydration) and choice of pharmaceutical formulation (Young, Weeks, and Hutton 2012) must be considered. All of these factors influence whether a suitable amount of drug reaches the appropriate site of action to have the desired effect.
