Download Medication Labels

Medication Labels
Reading Medication Labels
• Medication labels vary in appearance from
manufacturer to manufacturer
• The Federal Drug Administration (FDA)
does regulate what information must be
included on the label but not the format in
which the information is displayed
Reading Medication Labels
• The following slide is an example of an antibiotic
label
• Each label must show the following
– Name of drug and total amount of drug in the
container
– How this medication can be administered to the client
• Orally, IV, Rectally etc.
– How to reconstitute, if in a powder form
– How much of the drug is found in each milliliter (mL)
• i.e. – amount of milligrams per 1 milliliter
– Usual dose to be given and how it is to be stored
Bottle Labels for Tablets
• The image to the right
is the following
information
– Name of drug – Trade
and generic
• Lanoxin (digoxin)
– Number of tablets in
bottle
• 1000
– Amount of drug in
each tablet
• 250 mcg (0.25 mg_
Bottle Labels for Tablets
• The image to the right
is for Percocet
– Percocet actually
contains 2 different
drugs: Oxycodone 5
mg and
Acetaminophen 325
mg
• There 100 tablets in
the bottle
Use of Stock Bottles
• The 2 previous labels are examples of
labels found on Stock bottles
– Stock bottles are used by pharmacists to fill
multiple prescriptions/orders
– These are usually not seen on patient
floors/units in an institution
• However RNs working in small hospitals
Emergency Departments may see these when
there is not a pharmacist on duty 24/7
– This is why you need to know how to figure how many
doses are in a bottle for you math competency exam
Label Information from
Previous Slide
• Veetids 125 is the name of the drug product;
this is the Trade name given to the product by
the specific manufacturer
• Penicillin B Potassium is the Generic name
• This is an oral suspension when reconstituted
• When the drug reconstituted there are a total of
200 mLs in the container
• After reconstitution of the powder each 5 mLs
contains 125 mg
Label Information from
Slide (con’t)
• It label also gives specific instructions on how to
reconstitute the drug
– What solution is to be used
– Total amount of solution to be added
– How the solution is to be added to the container
• In this example 117 mLs of water is to be added to the
container and then the container is to be shaken to
dissolve the powder
• NOTE: When the powder is dissolved, there are 200
mLs of drug solution as stated on the label not 117
mLs. This is because there are inert materials in the
powder which add to the total volume of the
solution. You calculate your total amount of drug
based on the 200 mLs - not the 117 mLs used to
reconstitute the powder
Why Should You know how to
Reconstitute Medications
• Many times when working in a large
institution, the medications will be sent to
the floor already reconstituted and in a
single dose amount
– However, if working in a small institution
where there is not 24/7 pharmacist coverage
the RN may have to dose her client from a
stock bottle