Terminologies in Introduction to Pharmacology

Question 1

PHARMACOLOGY

Answer 1

• the study of chemicals and how they affect living creatures, including the biological, chemical, and physiologic impacts in addition to the physical and chemical characteristics.

Question 2

PHARMACOKINETICS

Answer 2

• study of how drugs travel through the body; the term comes from the Greek terms pharmakon (drug or poison) and kinesis (motion).

Question 3

PHARMACODYNAMICS

Answer 3

• study of the effects of the drugs on the body; here is where medications imitate the effects of the body’s natural chemical messengers.

Question 4

PHARMACOTHERAPEUTICS

Answer 4

• the use of drugs to diagnose, prevent or treat disease.

Question 5

CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY

Answer 5

• study of drugs in humans for patients and healthy volunteers

Question 6

OVER-THE-COUNTER DRUGS (OTC)

Answer 6

• drugs found to be safe and appropriate for use without direct supervision of the HCP and may be purchased without a prescription

Question 7

ENTERAL DRUG ADMINISTRATION

Answer 7

• the medicine is absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract through the enteral modes of delivery. The term “enteral route” typically refers to ingesting medication orally.

Question 8

PARENTERAL DRUG ADMINISTRATION

Answer 8

• drugs administered via routes other than the digestive tract are referred to as parenteral medication administration. Parenteral refers to medications administered via injection or infusion.

Question 9

PRN DECISIONS

Answer 9

• PRN stands for pro re nata, a Latin phrase meaning as needed, PRN medication order in which the nurse has the discretion, regarding when to give the drug and in some cases, how much to give, to implement this, the nurse must know the reason the drug is prescribed and be able to assess the patient’s medication needs.

Question 10

PATIENT ADHERENCE

Answer 10

• also known as compliance is defined as the extent to which a patient’s behavior coincides with medical advice.

Question 11

BIOAVAILABILITY

Answer 11

• refers to the amount of medicine accessible that has been delivered, for instance, absorption and the first-pass effect affect the bioavailability of oral medications, whereas IV medications are 100% bioavailable.

Question 12

HALF-LIFE & PRODRUG

Answer 12

• HALFTIME is the duration of time required to reduce drug levels in the body by half
• PRODRUG is a compound that is metabolized into an active pharmacologic substance

Question 13

DOSE-RESPONSE RELATIONSHIP

Answer 13

• Physiological reactions of the body to variations in drug concentration at the scene of the crime
• Potency is the measure of a drug’s ability to cause a particular reaction in a user.
• Maximum Efficiency: When a drug’s dosage is increased, the response does no longer increase.

Question 14

10 RIGHTS TO MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION

Answer 14

IMPORTANT FIVE:
- RIGHT PATIENT
- RIGHT ROUTE
- RIGHT TIME
- RIGHT DRUG
- RIGHT DOSE
THE OTHER FIVE:
- RIGHT DOCUMENTATION
- RIGHT EDUCATION
- RIGHT TO REFUSE
- RIGHT ASSESSMENT
- RIGHT EVALUATION

Question 15

PROPERTIES OF AN IDEAL DRUG (6)

Answer 15

• EFFECTIVENESS
• SAFETY
• SELECTIVITY
• REVERSIBLE ACTION
• PREDICTABILITY
• EASE OF ADMINISTRATION

Question 16

DRUG NAMES(3)

Answer 16

1. CHEMICAL NAME – describes the drug’s chemical structure
2. GENERIC NAME - official, nonproprietary name, not owned by any company and universally accepted
3. TRADE/ BRAND NAME – proprietary name, chosen by the drug company and registered
   as a trademark.

Question 17

THERAPEUTIC EFFECT

Answer 17

• Explains the link between a drug’s therapeutic dose and its toxic dose.
• Wide safety margins for high TI negate the necessity for frequent serum medication level control
• Low TI has a small margin of safety; therefore, serum drug levels should be closely watched.

Question 18

ONSET, PEAK, AND DURATION

Answer 18

• Onset is the amount of time it takes medication to reach the MEC.
• Minimum Effective Concentration, or MEC, is the quantity of medicine needed to produce an effect.
• Peak: When a drug’s blood concentration reaches its maximum level.
• Duration is the time a medicine takes to start working.

Question 19

RECEPTOR THEORY

Answer 19

1. Agonist: a drug that mimics the activity of a receptor controlled by endogenous substances
2. An antagonist is a drug that can inhibit the usual receptor action controlled by endogenous substances.
3. Limited affinity for receptor sites; partial antagonist

Question 20

MEDICATION PRESCRIPTIONS

Answer 20

• Medication prescribed under a standard prescription is provided regularly, either with or without a termination date. The prescription is valid until the HCP stops prescribing the medication or the patient is released
• A single prescription is issued only once.
• Stat Prescription: a single, urgent prescription
• PRN specifies the dosage, frequency, and circumstances under which medicine may be administered.
• Standing prescriptions - formulated for a particular situation