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Pharmacology in
Nursing
FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS OF PHARMACOLOGY
MARIVIC E. ILARDE MAN, RN
Learning Objectives 2

The topic aims to introduce the basic

principles of pharmacology in relation
to nursing practice. Thus, learners will
be able to:
 Comprehend the basic concepts and
principles of Pharmacology
 Relate the laws, ethico-legal and
moral principles in drug
administration
 PHARMACOLOGY 3

 study of drugs and its origin, chemical structure,

preparation, administration, action, metabolism
and excretion.
 The study of drugs that alter functions of living
organisms.
 Pharmacy Compounding: preparation of
personalized medications
 Compounded medications: made based on the
practitioners prescription
 PHARMACOLOGY 4

 PHARMACY – art of preparing,

compounding, and dispensing
drugs. It also refers to the place
where drugs are prepared and
dispensed
 PHARMACIST – a person
licensed to prepare and
dispense drugs to make up
prescriptions.
 History Of Pharmacology 5

 HISTORY
 Babylonians
Earliestsurviving “prescriptions” on clay tablets
in 3000 B.C.
 Chinese
Recorded the Pen Tsao (Great Herbal) – a 40-
volume compendium of plant remedies dating
to 2700 B.C.
 Egyptians
Archives of remedies on a document known as
Eber’s (Erb’s) Papyrus in 1500 B.C.
 History Of Pharmacology 6
 Pharmacologia sen Manuductio and Materia
Medicum – Samuel Dale in 1693
First recorded reference to the word
pharmacology
 Early 1800s
Chemists isolates specific substances from
complex mixtures
Pharmacologists then study their effects in
animals
Fredrich Serturner (first isolated morphine
from opium, injected himself and three other
friends with huge doses (100mg))
 History Of Pharmacology 7

 Father of American
pharmacology
 (Founded the first
pharmacology department in
University of Michigan in 1890)
 Hopkins’ first professor of
pharmacology
 The early focus of his work was on
isolating and characterizing the
hormones of the endocrine system,
especially adrenaline and insulin. John Jacob Abel
 Basic Concepts Of 8

Pharmacology
DRUGS
 are chemicals that alter physiochemical
processes in body cells.
They can stimulate or inhibit normal cellular
functions.
Used interchangeably with medicines.
 DRUG DEFINITION 9

 A substance recognized by an
official pharmacopoeia or formulary
 A substance intended for use in the
diagnosis, cure, mitigation,
treatment, or prevention of disease
 A substance (other than food)
intended to affect the structure or
any function of the body
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Drug Classification
 CHEMICAL STRUCTURES: pertains to the
molecular arrangement of atoms in a molecule and
the chemical bonds that holds the atom together
 MECHANISM OF ACTION (MOA): refers to the
specific biochemical interaction through which
a drug substance produces its pharmacological
effect such as an enzyme or receptor
 MODE OF ACTION (MoA): describes a functional or
anatomical change, resulting from the exposure of a
living organism to a substance
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Drug Information
 Alsoreferred to as medication
information or drug informatics
 rangefrom discovery, use, and
management of information in the
use of medications
 Coversfrom drug identification,
pharmacokinetics to dosage and
adverse effects.
 Drug Names 12
1. Generic or Nonproprietary Name:
- name approved by the Medical or Pharmaceutical
Associations in the original country of manufacture and is
adopted by all countries.
e.g. Paracetamol
2. Brand name or trade name:
- name given by the manufacturer of the drug
e.g. Adol or Panadol or Biogesic
3. Chemical name
- name that describes the atomic or chemical structure
e.g. N-acetyl-p-aminophenol
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Drug Action
 DRUG ACTION 16

 Therapeutic effect
 also referred as the DESIRED EFFECT (primary
effect intended)
 Side effect
 also referred as the SECONDARY EFFECT
(unintended effect)
ADVERSE EFFECT (severe side effects)
 DRUG ACTION 17

 Drug Toxicity
Deleterious effects of a drug resulting from over dosage,
ingestion of external use drug, and accumulation in the
blood stream
 Drug Allergy
 immunologic reaction to drug
 Drug Tolerance
 exists in person with unusually low physiologic response
to a drug
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The Food and Drug Administration of the
Philippines
• created under the Department of Health to
license, monitor, and regulate the flow of food,
drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, and
household hazardous waste in the Philippines
• FDA's main goal is to ensure the health and safety of
food and drugs made available to the public.
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REPUBLIC ACT No. 3720
 known as the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
 An act to ensure the safety and purity of foods,
drugs, and cosmetics being made available to the
public by creating the food and drug administration
which shall administer and enforce the laws.
 REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8203 21

 OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE

SPECIAL LAW ON COUNTERFEIT
DRUGS
 “Unregistered imported drug
product" as distinguished from
counterfeit drug defined under
Section 3 of R.A., shall refer to
unregistered imported drug product
without a registered counterpart
brand in the Philippines.
 REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7394 22

“Consumer Act of the Philippines”

 protects the interests of the consumer,
promotes general welfare and to
establish standards of conduct for
business and industry
 protects against deceptive, unfair and
unconscionable sales acts and
practices.
Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act 23
of 2002 ( Republic Act (R.A.) No. 9165),
the Philippine Drug Enforcement
Agency (PDEA): created for the efficient
and effective law enforcement of all the
provisions on dangerous drugs and/or
precursors and essential chemicals as
provided in R.A
Two of the most used and valuable illegal drugs in the
country are methamphetamine hydrochloride
(known locally as shabu) and marijuana.
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Right client – can be measured by checking the 28
client identification bracelet and by having the
client state her or his name
 Some client answer to any name or unable
to respond, so client identification should
verified each time of medication
administered

 In the event of missing identification

bracelet, the nurse must verify the client
identity before any drug administration
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Right drug – means that the client receives the
drug that was prescribed
 Medication orders may be prescribed by:
 Physician
 Dentist
 Podiatrist
 License health care provider such as
advance practice registered nurse
 With authority from the state to order
medication
Categories of drug orders:
 Standing 31
 One-time
 PRN
 STAT

Right time – is the time at which the prescribed dose

should be administer
 Daily drug dosages are given at specified time
during a day such as
 Twice a day b.i.d
 Three time a day t.i.d
 Four times a day q.i.d.
 Every 6hrs q6h
 HS: hours of sleep
Right route – is necessary for adequate or appropriate
absorption 32
Common routes are the following:
 Oral
 Sublingual
 Buccal
 Inhalation
 Topical
 Inhalation
 Instillation
 Suppository, etc.
Right assessment – requires the appropriate data to be
collected before administration of drugs 33

Right documentation – requires that the nurses

immediately record the appropriate information about
drug administered include the ff:
 Name of the drug
 Dose
 Route
 Time and date
 Nurse initial or signature
 Sample Documentation 34
Nurses Notes:
 Temperature taken, 39 degrees Celsius
 Paracetamol 300 mg IV given as PRN order
Medication Chart:
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Right to educate – requires that the client received
accurate and thorough information about the medication
and how it relates to his or her situation

Client teaching also includes therapeutic purpose,

possible side effect of the drugs, any dietary restriction
or requirements skills administration, and laboratory
monitoring

Right evaluation – requires that the effectiveness of the

medication be determined by the client response to
medication
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Right to refuse – client can and do refuse to take
medication

It is the nurse responsibility to determine the possible

reason of refusal and to take reasonable measures to
facilitate the client taking the medication
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 Medication Prescription 38

Prescriber’s
Information Date Prescription was
written
Patient’s Information
Inscription:
Superscription: Medication Prescribed
“Recipe”
Quantity of
Medication
Sigma: Directions for
Instruction to the
Patient
Pharmacy
Physician’s
Physician’s signature
License and PTR Number
Components of Medication Prescription
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 Date and time the order is written
 Drug name: BN and Generic Name
 Drug dosage: 500 mg
 Route of administration
 Frequency and duration of administration
 Any special instructions for withholding or adjusting
dosage based on nursing assessment, drug
effectiveness, or laboratory result
 Physician or other health care provider signature or
name if TO or VO
 Signature of license practitioner
MEDICATIONS
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ORAL MEDICATIONS
 General Precautions 41

UNSAFE ACTIONS
 Do not crush enteric coated or gel-coated
tablets
 Do not crush long-acting tablets
 Do not try to open sealed capsules
 Do not crush contents of spansule – with
beads or pellets
 Do not give sublingual formulations orally
 Do not crush sublingual formulations
 Do not give oral medications sublingually
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SAFE ACTIONS
 Scored tablets may be split
 Chewable medications can be crushed
safely
 If a capsule opens easily, powder from the
capsules can be mixed with food or liquid
 Liquid-filled capsule contents can be (a)
squeezed out, or (b) aspirated then mixed
with food or liquid
 A sublingual formulation can still be given
ever if client is NPO
 Beads from readily opened capsules can
be sprinkled over soft food, but should not
be chewed.
MEDICATIONS
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ORAL MEDICATIONS
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ORAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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PARENTERAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
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TOPICAL MEDICATIONS
 PHARMACOLOGY

DRUGS MEDICINES
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Chemical Structures

Mechanism Of Action (Moa) Right Medication

DRUG classification
Mode Of Action (Moa)
Right Dose

DRUG information drug identification, cost, and

pharmacokinetics to dosage and Right Time
adverse effects

Right Route
Generic or Nonproprietary Name, Brand
DRUG Names name or trade name, and Chemical
name Nursing Right Client
Responsibilities
EFFECT: Therapeutic, side, adverse Right Client Education
DRUG action
Drug toxicity, allergy, and tolerance Right Documentation

Right to Refuse
REPUBLIC ACT No. 3720 Food and Drug Administration of the
DRUG regulation and
Philippines (FDA)
mandates Right Assessment
Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 Republic Act (R.A.)
No. 9165), the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Right Evaluation
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