What is a drug calculation test?

A drug calculation test is an examination of your ability to efficiently work through the mental arithmetic associated with administering drugs to patients. You are working with dosage formulas, weights and volume, translating different types of measurements and working out dosage schedules.

What are the steps in calculating drug dosages?

When you need a new measure

1. Read the drug order thoroughly, paying close attention to decimal places and zeros.
2. Convert the dose from the system in which it’s ordered to the system in which it’s available.
3. Calculate the number of capsules or tablets or the amount of solution needed to obtain the desired dose.

How do you calculate drugs in mL?

To calculate the millilitres/hour we first need to work out what dose is contained in one millilitre of the infusion dosage. We can do this by dividing the volume of the dosage by the weight of the medicine it contains. In this case 500ml/500mg = 1ml/mg.

Is there medication calculation on the Nclex?

Remember, medication calculation questions don’t only exist on the NCLEX.

How do you calculate concentration in nursing?

How is drug strength calculated?

Strengths and concentrations However, quite often the strength of a drug is presented as a percentage, as described below: % w/v = percentage weight of a substance by volume measured in grams in 100 millilitres. % w/w = percentage weight of a substance by weight measured in grams in 100 grams.

How do you calculate mg per hour?

Convert 600 mcg/hr to mg/hr.

1. mcg → mg → g → kg ( ÷ by 1,000 )
2. 600 ÷ 1,000 = 0.6 mg/hr.

How are suspension drugs calculated?

How to calculate drug dosage

1. Determine the dosage of the medication.
2. Weigh yourself.
3. Multiply these two values to get the dose of medication in mg: 2 * 80 = 160 mg .
4. What if your medication is liquid?
5. Divide the dose by the medicine concentration to obtain the liquid dose: 160 / 2 = 80 ml .

Why is drug calculation important in nursing?

Patient Safety includes the safe, accurate and correct drug administration; precise drug dosage calculations are an essential skill for nurses. Weaknesses in calculation skills may result in the administration of incorrect drug doses to patients, causing damage or endangering their lives [1].

How are drug percentages calculated?

% w/v = percentage weight of a substance by volume measured in grams in 100 millilitres. % w/w = percentage weight of a substance by weight measured in grams in 100 grams. % v/v = percentage volume of a substance by volume measured in millilitres in 100 millilitres.

What does 50mg kg mean?

The dose is the amount of medication measured (mg, mL) The dosage is the amount of medication based on units per weight of the animal (50 mg/kg, 10 mL/kg) The. concentration of the drug is calculated by the manufacturer (mg/mL, mg/tablet)

How do you convert mg to mL nursing?

So, 1 mg is found in 0.5 ml of solution. So, if there is 1 mg of active drug in 0.5 ml, we can multiply 0.5 ml of solution by five to get our answer (as we want 5 mg of the drug). 0.5 multiplied by five is equal to 2 and a half millilitres.