ABSTRACT
In critical care, nurses often administer multiple high-risk medicines via bolus or infusions simultaneously to a critically ill patient. This chapter outlines the practicalities of drug administration in resource limited environments including medication errors, useful/commonly used drug calculations and potential complications including anaphylaxis. Unsafe medication practices and errors are recognised as leading causes of injury and avoidable harm globally. In 2017, the World Health Organization launched its Third Global Patient Safety Challenge ‘Medications without Harm’, with the aim of reducing avoidable harm by 50% by 2022. Prior to administration of any drugs, they must be double-checked independently, by another practitioner who repeats the calculation independently and compares answers. In resource limited environments, access to syringe pumps and volumetric pumps may be limited. Prior to using any infusion devices, nurses need to check they have received appropriate training in the use of these devices, to prevent potential complications and medication errors.
