Nurses must use math regularly in their career.
Nursing is an intricate and detailed career. It involves extensive knowledge of science, nutrition, health, wellness, communication and mathematics. Although it may not be obvious, nurses use math on a daily basis. In fact, it is one of the most important skills they use. To safely provide medications to patients, nurses must understand conversions, dosage calculations and reconstitution equations. A thorough understanding of nursing math significantly limits the risk for medication errors.
Prerequisites
Before being accepted into a nursing school, students must have successfully completed a minimum number of math classes. Although each school sets its own requirements, most nursing programs require students to receive a grade of C or better in a college-level mathematics course. However, some schools offer a math placement test, which can be taken in lieu of the traditional mathematics course. Again, each school sets its own requirements regarding the grade a student must receive on the test to qualify for the nursing program.
Conversions
Conversions remains one of the most important mathematical requirements for a successful nursing career. Common conversions include those for height, weight, length and volume. For example, the doctor may ask you to give a specific number of milligrams of medication per every one kilogram of weight. However, most hospitals record weight in terms of pounds. A nurse needs to understand convert weight from pounds to kilograms in order to safely administer the medication.
Dosages
Continuing on from the previous example, you must take your math conversion one step further to determine the appropriate medication dose. Once you have determined the patient's weight in kilograms, you must use additional math equations to determine how much medication to give. For example, if the patient weights 50 kilograms, and you are supposed to give 5 milligrams of medication per one kilogram of weight, you use math to determine that you need to give 250 milligrams of medication. A nurse should have a thorough understanding of dosage calculations for oral, parenteral, intramuscular and intravenous medications.
Reconstitutions
Some medications must be reconstituted before administration; they are manufactured in powdered form, yet they must be converted to liquid form before being given to the patient. Each medication will give specific instructions as to the proper reconstitution. A nurse must be able to read this information and determine the precise amount of liquid to add to the powder. Adding an incorrect amount of liquid could result in a medication that is too weak or too strong.
Tags: milligrams medication, amount liquid, dosage calculations, each school, each school sets, give milligrams, give milligrams medication
