Tablets and Capsules

Transcription

1 Tablets and Capsules Medications are often administered as tablets or capsules. Number of tablets or capsules to give = What the patient is ordered over what you ve got available The is the amount of medication the patient has been prescribed The is the strength of EACH tablet or capsule The and the MUST have the same units (both mcg or both mg or both g) when you use the formula above Example How many tablets should be given if a patient is ordered (prescribed) 60 mg? Step 1 From the question identify the and : The is the amount of medication that the patient has been prescribed. In this case it is 60 mg. The is the strength of each tablet or capsule. In this case it is. Both the and have been expressed in the same unit (mg).

2 Step 2 You now substitute the values for the and the Stock Strength into the formula for tablets and capsules. Substitution means that you replace the words with their numerical values: So, the number of tablets to be given is: = 60 mg Using a calculator: To solve this using a calculator enter: = which gives an answer of 2. 2 tablets should be administered. Without using a calculator: 60 mg This is a fraction, which you must now attempt to cancel. You can apply the 10 Rule since both 60 and 30 end in zero. By removing a zero from the end of each number (and also cancelling the units of mg) you will arrive at 6 and 3: 6 3

3 Dividing both 6 and 3 by 3 gives 2 and 1: 2 1 And when a fraction is expressed over 1 you can remove the 1 and write: 2 The patient should receive 2 tablets. Example A patient is ordered 0.03 grams of Codeine Phosphate. The tablets available are in strength. How many tablets should the patient take? Step 1 The patient requires 0.03 g so you can write that the Dose Ordered = 0.03 g. The of each tablet = Before calculating the number of tablets to administer you must ensure that both the and the Stock Strength have the same units. In this case they do not. The is expressed in grams (g) and the Stock Strength is expressed in milligrams (mg). You should change the larger unit (g) to the smaller unit (mg), which means that you should change 0.03 g to its equivalent value in mg: To change from g to mg you must multiply the quantity in grams by 1000 mg/g: = 0.03 g "1000 mg/g =

4 Step 2 Now that both the and the have the same units substitute these values into the tablets/capsules equation: = Using a calculator: To solve this using a calculator enter: = which gives an answer of 1. The patient should be given 1 tablet. Without using a Calculator: 30 and 30 will cancel to 1 and 1 by dividing both by 30 and the units of mg will also cancel: 1 1 = 1 The patient should receive 1 tablet of Codeine Phosphate.

5 Example A patient is ordered 375 mg of Penicillin. The tablets are available in 250 mg strength. How many tablets should be given? Step 1 Step 2 From the question, the is 375 mg and the is 250 mg. Both the and the have the same units (mg) so there is no need to convert any units. Since the and the have the same units substitute their values into the tablets/capsules equation: = 375 mg 250 mg Using a calculator: To solve this using a calculator enter: = which gives an answer of 1.5 The patient should receive 1.5 (one and a half) tablets. Without using a calculator: 375 mg 250 mg

6 This is a fraction, which can be cancelled. You can apply the 5 Rule since 375 ends in 5 and 250 ends in = = 50 So the fraction has now become (after you cancel the units of mg): Once again, this fraction can be cancelled by using the 5 Rule: 75 5 = = 10 The fraction has now become: Dividing both 15 and 10 by 5 again will give: And the final fraction is: 15 5 = = You need to express your answer as a decimal and so you must change the fraction above to a decimal. To do this you simply divide the numerator (3) by the denominator (2) using short division: 3 2 = 3 2 = 1.5

7 The final answer is that you must give the patient 1.5 (one and a half) tablets of Penicillin IntelliLearn Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved