Pharmacy Abbreviations and Conversions

Vocabulary flashcards covering common medical abbreviations, ISMP do-not-use rules, dosage forms, routes of administration, and measurement conversion factors.

po

Per os, meaning 'by mouth'.

NPO

Nothing by mouth.

SL

Sublingual, or 'under the tongue'.

ou

Both eyes (Latin: oculus uterque).

os

Left eye (Latin: oculus sinistra).

od

Right eye (Latin: oculus dextra).

au

Both ears (Latin: auris uterque).

as

Left ear (Latin: auris sinistra).

ad (Ears)

Right ear (Latin: auris dextra).

SUBQ

Subcutaneous. ISMP recommends using all uppercase letters without spaces or periods.

BID

Two times a day.

TID

Three times a day.

QID

Four times a day.

ATC

Around-the-clock administration.

WA

While awake.

ac

Before meals.

pc

After meals.

prn

As needed.

c

With (from Latin 'cum').

s

Without (from Latin 'sine').

NMT

No more than.

MR

May repeat.

Sig or Signa

Literally means 'write on the label'; used to describe the directions for patient use on a prescription.

DAW

Dispense as written; indicates the prescriber wants the brand name medication instead of generic.

QS or qs

Quantity sufficient; adding a sufficient quantity to reach a desired volume.

Normal Saline (NS)

A sodium chloride solution with a concentration of $0.9\text{\%}$ NaCl.

D5W

Dextrose $5\text{\%}$ in Water solution.

SWFI

Sterile Water for Injection.

VTBI

Volume to be Infused.

Grain (gr)

A unit of weight in the Avoirdupois and Apothecary systems equal to $65\,mg$ (often rounded to $60\,mg$).

1 Pound (lb) to Kilograms (kg) Conversion

$1\,lb = 0.454\,kg$ (or $1\,kg = 2.2\,lbs$).

1 Fluid Ounce (fl oz) to Milliliters (mL) Conversion

$1\,fl\,oz = 30\,mL$ (technically $29.57\,mL$).

Teaspoon (tsp) to Milliliters (mL) Conversion

$1\,tsp = 5\,mL$.

Tablespoon (tbsp) to Milliliters (mL) Conversion

$1\,tbsp = 15\,mL$.

1 Cup (c) Volume Conversion

$1\,c = 8\,fl\,oz = 240\,mL$.

1 Pint (pt) Volume Conversion

$1\,pt = 480\,mL$ ($2\,cups$ or $16\,fl\,oz$).

1 Quart (qt) Volume Conversion

$1\,qt = 960\,mL$ ($2\,pints$ or $4\,cups$).

1 Gallon (gal) Volume Conversion

$1\,gal = 3840\,mL$ ($4\,quarts$).

NKDA

No known drug allergies.

ISMP 'Do Not Use' Rule for 'U' or 'u'

Do not use 'u' for units because it can be mistaken for '0' (zero), '4', or 'cc'; write 'unit' instead.

ISMP 'Do Not Use' Rule for 'Q.D.'

Do not use 'Q.D.', 'QD', 'q.d.', or 'qd' because it is easily mistaken for QID; write 'daily' instead.

ISMP 'Do Not Use' Rule for 'Q.O.D.'

Do not use 'Q.O.D.', 'QOD', 'q.o.d.', or 'qod' because periods can be mistaken for 'I'; write 'every other day' instead.

Trailing Zero Policy

Never use a trailing zero (e.g., $X.0\,mg$) because the decimal point may be missed; write $X\,mg$ instead.

Leading Zero Policy

Always use a leading zero before a decimal point (e.g., write $0.X\,mg$, not $.X\,mg$) so the decimal point is not missed.

Intradermal Injection Technique Diagram

Diagram illustrating a $15\,degree$ intradermal injection creating a skin bleb in the epidermis above the dermis and subcutaneous layer.

Optometric Eye Abbreviations Mnemonic Chart

Mnemonics for eye abbreviations: 'yOU look with BOTH eyes' (OU), 'the RIGHT dose won't OD' (OD), and 'the ONLY ONE LEFT is OS' (OS).

Metric Weight Unit Conversions Scheme

Conversion diagram showing multiplication by $1000$ when moving down from kg to g to mg to mcg, and division by $1000$ when moving up.

Big 'G' Capacity Diagram

A visual memory tool depicting $1\,Gallon$ containing $4\,Quarts$ (Q), $8\,Pints$ (P), and $16\,Cups$ (C).