# Unit Dose

For Unit Dose order entry, you must fill in the DRUG box. The items listed below are used in this type of order. To find out more about an item, click on it to go to its definition. To return to the top of the page, click the Back button.

· Drug

· Dosage ordered

· Units per dose

· Med route

· Schedule type

· Schedule

· Administration times

· Provider

· Self med

· Nature of order

Drug

Pharmacists select Unit Dose medications directly from the DRUG file (#50). The Orderable Item for the selected drug is automatically added to the order, and all dispense drugs entered for the order must be linked to that Orderable Item. If the Orderable Item is edited, data in the DOSAGE ORDERED and DISPENSE DRUG fields will be deleted. If multiple dispense drugs are needed in an order, they may be entered by selecting the DISPENSE DRUG field (#10) from the edit list before accepting the new order (see either the Inpatient Medications Nurses' or Pharmacists Manual for more information on this process). After each dispense drug is selected, it will be checked against the patient's current medications for duplicate drug or class orders, and drug-drug/drug-allergy interactions (see either the Inpatient Medications Nurses' or Pharmacists Manual for more information on this process).

Note: For IV order entry, you must bypass the "Select DRUG:" prompt in the Inpatient Order Entry option (by pressing the Return key) and then choose the IV type at the "Select IV TYPE:" prompt.

Dosage Ordered

To allow pharmacy greater control over the order display shown for Unit Dose orders on profiles, labels, MARs, etc., the DOSAGE ORDERED field is no longer required. If no DOSAGE ORDERED is defined for an order, the order will be displayed as follows:

DISPENSE DRUG NAME

Give: UNITS/DOSE MEDICATION ROUTE SCHEDULE

If DOSAGE ORDERED is defined for the order, it will be displayed as:

ORDERABLE ITEM NAME DOSE FORM

Give: DOSAGE ORDERED MEDICATION ROUTE SCHEDULE

Note: If an order contains multiple DISPENSE DRUGS, DOSAGE ORDERED will be required, and should contain the total dosage of the medication to be administered.

Units Per Dose

This is the number of units (tablets, capsules, etc.) of the dispense drug selected to be given when the order is administered. If no data is entered, the UNITS PER DOSE is assumed to be 1.

Med Route

This is the route of administration to be used for the order. If a default Medication Route is identified for the selected Orderable Item, it will be used as the default for the order.

Schedule Type

This defines the type of schedule to be used when administering the order. If the schedule type entered is one time, the order's start and stop dates must be the same. When a new order is entered or an order entered through CPRS is finished by pharmacy the default Schedule Type is determined as described below:

· If a schedule type is defined for the Orderable Item selected, that schedule type is used for the order.

· If no schedule type has been found and if no schedule is defined, schedule type is CONTINUOUS.

· If no schedule type has been found and the schedule contains PRN, the schedule type is PRN.

· If no schedule type has been found and the schedule entered is found in the ADMINISTRATION SCHEDULE file (#51.1), and a schedule type is defined for it, that schedule type is used for the order.

· If no schedule type has been found and the schedule is "NOW", "STAT", "ONCE", or "ONE-TIME" the schedule type is ONCE.

· If the schedule type determined above is DAY OF WEEK the schedule type is set to CONTINUOUS.

· If no schedule type was determined above, the schedule type is CONTINUOUS.

Schedule

This defines the frequency the order is to be administered. Schedules may be selected from the ADMINISTRATION SCHEDULE file (#51.1) or day-of-week or admin/time schedules may be used. Unit Dose recognizes schedules in the following formats:

· QxH - Hourly schedules where x is the number of hours between administrations

· QxD - Daily schedules where x is the number of days between administrations

· QxM - Monthly schedules where x is the number of months between administrations

If a schedule is defined for the Orderable Item selected when entering a new order, that schedule is displayed as the default for the order.

Administration Times

This defines the time(s) of day the order is to be given. If the schedule for the order contains "PRN" any administration times for the order will be ignored. In new order entry the default administration times are determined as described below:

· If administration times are defined for the Orderable Item selected, they will be shown as the default for the order.

· If administration times are defined in the ADMINISTRATION SCHEDULE file (#51.1) for the patient's ward and the order's schedule, they will be shown as the default for the order.

· If administration times are defined for the Schedule, they will be shown as the default for the order.

Provider

This identifies the provider who authorized the order. Only users identified as providers who are authorized to write medication orders may be selected.

Self Med

Identifies the order as to be given for administration by the patient. This prompt is only shown if the 'SELF MED' IN ORDER ENTRY field of the INPATIENT WARD PARAMETERS file (#59.6) is set to on.

Nature of Order

This specifies how the order originated. An order can be specified as written on the chart, telephoned, or verbal. This data is stored and displayed through OE/RR.