North Carolina (NC) Medication Aide Exam Study Guide 2024–2025 | Complete State Test Prep with Practice Questions, Verified Answers, and Detailed Explanations for Guaranteed Success

Hour of sleep or bedtime

HS or qhs

Twice a day

bid or BID

Subcutaneous

sq. or SQ

Every other day

qod or QOD

Once a day

qd or QD

gram

gm

milligram

mg

after meals

pc

OTC

over-the-counter

by mouth

po

q

every

ac

before meals

qid or QID

four times a day

tsp

teaspoonful

prn or PRN

as needed

Tbsp

Tablespoonful

tid or TID

Three times a day

ml

milliliter

oz

ounce

MAR

Medication administration record

The following are abbreviations for drug routes, EXCEPT

PD

You receive an order for Nitroglycerin to be given sublingually. It would be given

Under the tongue

The following are abbreviations for dosages or strengths of medications EXCEPT

PD

If you are not sure of an abbreviation, it is O.K. to gues

False

It is important to know the policy on approved abbreviations for your facility.

True

A milliliter is the same as a milligram

False

Over-the-counter drugs may be kept as floor stock or house stock in an adult care home.

True

When administering medications, it is O.K. to leave a resident's medication at the bedside if the resident is present.

False

You are legally responsible for any medication or treatment you administer.

True

Medications should be given within one hour before or one hour after the prescribed or scheduled time of administration.

True

Residents have a right to refuse medications.

True

Oral medications must be stored separately from topical or external medications.

True

Staff giving medications in adult care homes have to demonstrate certain skills with administering medications and be checked off or validated by a registered nurse or registered pharmacist.

True

Regulations for the accountability or recordkeeping of controlled substances differ from the regulations for non-controlled medications.

True

Unlicensed staff in adult care homes may administer intramuscular (IM) injections and subcutaneous (SQ) injections.

False

A telephone or verbal order for medications and treatments must be signed by the person who prescribed the medications within:

15 days from the date the order is given.

Information or documentation on the MAR for PRN (as needed) medications that are administered includes:

all of the above

Mr. Jones, a resident of an adult care home, is going to visit his family for the week. The proper way to prepare Mr. Jones' prescription medications to take with him would be to:

Send the medications in containers that have been filled and labeled by a pharmacist and document the medications sent on the appropriate facility form.

The resident's physician or prescribing practitioner is to be contacted about the resident's medication orders:

all of the above

The facility is required to maintain or keep all medication orders for a resident:

in the resident's record in the facility

The following statement about non-prescription (OTC) medications is FALSE

They may be administered to a resident without a physician's order

Which of the following is TRUE when prepouring or preparing medications in advance

Oral solid medications (tablets and capsules) for routine administration may be prepared within 24 hours of the prescribed time for administration

You have to document on MAR when a medication is

All of the above

In order for a medication to be administered you must have

a physician's order

"As needed" (PRN) medications must be administered according to

The reason and frequency of administration specified in the physician's order

When should medications be signed off on the MAR?

After a resident has been observed to actually take the medication

You remove a resident's medications from the packages or containers and the resident refuses to take his 12PM medications, you should

Dispose of the medications in accordance with the facility's policy and procedures.

When medications are stored in a refrigerator that is accessible to residents, the medications are to be:

Stored in a separate locked container in the refrigerator

Three of the four statements below are requirements when residents administer their own medications. Which one is not a requirement for self-administration?

The resident has to be observed to take each dose of medication

One of the best ways of identifying the correct resident is to

Use photographs of the residents

Checking the medication label against the MAR three times should always

Be done with each medication administered to each resident

All of the following are examples of medication errors EXCEPT one. Which one of the following is NOT a medication error?

the refusal of a medication by a resident.

If you are unable to read the physician's handwriting on a prescription or health services record or the directions for a medication are incomplete, you should:

Contact your supervisor, the pharmacist or the physician

When a resident has difficulty swallowing, the resident is at risk for

Aspiration

When applying a topical medication, you should wear

Gloves

An inhaler must be shaken

Before each ad every time you use it

After the resident has received nose drops, the resident should

Lie down with head lower than shoulders for a few minutes

If a resident is using the bathroom at the time you are to administer the resident's medications, it is unacceptable to

Flag the MAR to remind you to return to that resident later in the medication pass to administer the medications

Which of the following statement is NOT true about allergies and medications?

Allergic reactions can include rashes, swelling, itching but are never life threatening

All of the following are considered reasons for medication errors, EXCEPT

Checking the medication label with the MAR when administering medications

Medication errors may

interfere with how effective the medication will be, produce bad reactions, threaten the resident's life (all of the above)

Never administer medications that

are discolored OR are outdated/expired (both A and B)

If you have to calculate dosages, it is best to:

ask the supervisor, nurse or the pharmacist to calculate the dosage with you

How many minutes should a medication prescribed "before meals" be administered prior to eating?

30 minutes

When administering medications, the main concern with leaving medications at the bedside is that:

the resident may never take the medications and someone else may

When administering medications, it is safe practice to

read the label and the MAR each time a medication is administered.

When a medication cannot be administered on time

document the reason for the delay on the MAR

If the resident expresses concern about a medication you are about to administe

double check the medication and dosage information

The medication label and the MAR are compared

When selecting or removing the medication from the supply or storage area, Before pouring the medication, After pouring and before returning the medication to the supply or storage area (all of the above)

A resident returns from a home visit and the resident's mother brings an over-thecounter medication that she purchased and asks you to administer it for cold symptoms, you should:

Explain to the mother that even over-the-counter medications require a physician's order.

You are with a resident at a doctor's appointment. The physician writes an order for Amoxicillin and you know the chart is flagged "Allergic to Amoxicillin". You should:

Remind the physician of the allergy warning

When new orders are received, the MAR is changed to reflect the new orders.

True

A resident's allergies should be documented on the MAR and the resident's record

True

A drug reference book is a helpful tool to identify or find information on medications and dosages and side effects.

True

If you question a dosage, give the medication then call the pharmacy

False

A medication cannot cause a resident to be confused

False

A delay in administering a medication may cause a life-threatening incident

True

A medication that is ordered sublingually may be chewed or swallowed

False

Side effects of medications may include

Change in behavior, Rash, Change in swallowing, Change in mobility or walking (all the above)

A medication arrives from the pharmacy, and there is no order for the medication on the MAR, you should:

Look in the resident's record for an order and/or notify the supervisor, nurse, or pharmacist before administering the medication.

When you are administering a medication and the order on the MAR does not match the directions on the medication label, you should

Notify the supervisor, nurse or pharmacist and/or look in the resident's record for the current medication order.

A resident has just returned to the facility from the hospital and the medication order on the FL-2 is "Continue previous medications". You should

Contact the resident's physician for medication orders.

"Ambien 5mg po as needed for sleep":

is an incomplete order

A medication order is transcribed onto the MAR:

Only after a physician's order for the medication is received by the facility

When measuring liquids, which of the following statements is FALSE:

A teaspoon or tablespoon from the kitchen may be used.

When administering two or more different eye drops at the same time, which of the following apply:

(all the above) Wash your hands prior to and after administration of the eyedrops. Wear gloves when there is redness, drainage or possibility of infection. Allow a 3-minute to 5-minute period between the administration of each eye medication. Sign/initial the medication administration record (MAR) after the administration of each type of eye drop.

Before administering a "PRN" medication, you need to

Know the reason the medication is being requested and look at the MAR to see when the medication was last administered.

Mrs. Smith has an order for Darvocet N-100 1 tablet every 4 hours as needed for pain. According to the MARs, she has been taking the Darvocet at 8AM, 12PM, 4PM and 8PM every day for the past 2 months. Which of the following statement is correct?

Mrs. Smith's physician should be contacted about how often Mrs. Smith is taking the Darvocet.

You are assigned to administer 8:00AM medications today. It is 8:00AM and the residents need to be at the workshop by 8:00AM, the van is waiting. You should

Administer medications as you were trained, even if this means the residents will be late for the workshop.

Mr. Cook who is an alert and oriented resident refuses all of his morning medications. He says the medications do not help him and he doesn't need them. Your best response is to:

Encourage the resident to take the medications by explaining the importance and purposes of the medications.

When administering medications this morning, Mrs. Walls is extremely difficult to wake up. She is having difficulty with swallowing her medications. You should:

Hold her medications at this time and immediately notify your supervisor, nurse or physician.

(see pg 17) The physician orders Haldol Solution 2mg by mouth at bedtime. Which of the measuring devices above would you use to measure 2mg of Haldol?

None of the above devices should be used.

The physician orders Potassium Chloride Solution 1 tablespoonful mixed with water or juice every morning. Which of the measuring devices would you use to measure 1 tablespoon of Potassium Chloride?

Medication Cup.

An order is received for Mellaril 10mg every morning. The physician orders Mellaril Liquid, since the resident is not able to swallow tablets or capsules. Which of the measuring devices above would you use to measure 10mg of Mellaril?

None of the above devices should be used.

The physician ordered Dilantin Suspension 4ml by mouth three times daily for a resident. Which measuring device would you use to measure 4ml of Dilantin

Oral dropper

The physician's order is for Milk of Magnesia 2 Tbsp. by mouth at bedtime. How much would you give using the metric system?

USE

1 ounce (oz) = 30ml 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) = 15ml 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5ml 1 milliliter (ml) = 1 cubic centimeter (cc)

20 ml

The physician's order is for Lactulose 2 tsp. by mouth at bedtime. How much would you give using the metric system?

USE

1 ounce (oz) = 30ml 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) = 15ml 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5ml 1 milliliter (ml) = 1 cubic centimeter (cc)

10 ml

The physician's order is for Riopan Liquid 2 every 4 hours as needed for heartburn. How much would you give using the metric system?

USE

1 ounce (oz) = 30ml 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) = 15ml 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5ml 1 milliliter (ml) = 1 cubic centimeter (cc)

Can't tell how much to give from this order

The physician's order is for Haldol Liquid Concentrate 2ml every 8 hours. How much would you give?

USE

1 ounce (oz) = 30ml 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) = 15ml 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5ml 1 milliliter (ml) = 1 cubic centimeter (cc)

None of the above answers are correct

(see label on page 20) The order on the MAR for the above resident is: "Propulsid 10mg one tablet three times daily before meals and at bedtime." The medication container received from the pharmacy is labeled as indicated above. You should:

Not give the medication and notify the supervisor, pharmacist, nurse or physician according to the facility's policy.