NSG-2233-01 (23/FA): Pharmacology/Metrology Lilley et al. (2023) chapters 1, 4-7

Compliance

Implementation or fulfillment of a prescriber's/caregiver's prescribed course of treatment or therapeutic plan by a patient. Use of compliance versus the term adherence acknowledges the consideration/acceptance of patient/family/caregiver participation in the use of the nursing process.

Medication error

Any preventable adverse drug event involving inappropriate medication use by a patient or health care professional; it may or may not cause the patient harm.

Noncompliance

An informed decision on the part of the patient not to adhere to or follow a therapeutic plan or suggestion.

Nursing process

An organizational framework for the practice of nursing. It encompasses all steps taken by the nurse in caring for a patient:assessment, identification of human needs, planning (with goals and outcome criteria), implementation of the plan (with patient teaching), and evaluation.

Outcomes

Descriptions of specific patient behaviors or responses that demonstrate meeting of or achievement of behaviors related to each patient's human needs. These statements are specific while framed in behavioral terms and are measurable.

Prescriber

Any health care professional licensed by the appropriate regulatory board to prescribe medications.

Alternative medicine

Herbal medicine, chiropractic, acupuncture, massage, reflexology, and any other therapies traditionally not emphasized in Western medical schools.

Complementary medicine

Alternative medicine when used simultaneously with, rather than instead of, standard Western medicine.

Conventional medicine

The practice of medicine as taught in Western medical schools.

Dietary supplement

A product that contains an ingredient intended to supplement the diet, including vitamins, minerals, herbs, or other botanicals.

Herbal medicine

The practice of using herbs to heal.

Herbs

Plant components including bark, roots, leaves, seeds, flowers, fruit of trees, and extracts of these plants that are valued for their savory, aromatic, or medicinal qualities.

Iatrogenic effects

Unintentional adverse effects that are caused by the actions of a prescriber or other health care professional, or by a specific treatment.

Integrative medicine

Simultaneous use of both traditional and alternative medicine.

Legend drugs

Medications that are not legally available without a prescription from a prescriber; also called prescription drugs.

Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs

Medications that are legally available without a prescription.

Phytochemicals

The pharmacologically active ingredients in herbal remedies.

Affective domain

The most intangible domain of the learning process. It involves affective behavior, which is conduct that expresses feelings, needs, beliefs, values, and opinions; the feeling domain.

Cognitive domain

The domain involved in the learning and storage of basic knowledge. It is the thinking portion of the learning process and incorporates an individual's previous experiences and perceptions; the learning/thinking domain.

Health literacy

The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain and then process and understand basic health information as well as basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.

Learning

The acquisition of knowledge or skill.

Psychomotor domain

The domain involved in the learning of a new procedure or skill; often called the doing domain.

Teaching

A system of directed and deliberate actions intended to induce learning.

Adverse drug event

Any undesirable occurrence related to administration of or failure to administer a prescribed medication.

Adverse drug reactions

Unexpected, unintended, or excessive responses to medications given at therapeutic dosages (as opposed to overdose); one type of adverse drug event.

Allergic reaction

An immunologic reaction resulting from an unusual sensitivity of a patient to a certain medication; a type of adverse drug event and a subtype of adverse drug reactions.

Idiosyncratic reaction

Any abnormal and unexpected response to a medication, other than an allergic reaction, that is peculiar to an individual patient.

Medical errors

A broad term used to refer to any errors at any point in patient care that cause or have the potential to cause patient harm.

Medication errors

Any preventable adverse drug events involving inappropriate medication use by a patient or health care professional; they may or may not cause the patient harm.

Medication reconciliation

A procedure to maintain an accurate and up-to-date list of medications for all patients between all phases of health care delivery.

Bias

Any systematic error in a measurement process.

Black box warning

A type of warning that appears in a drug's prescribing information and is required by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to alert prescribers of serious adverse events that have occurred with the given drug.

Blinded investigational drug study

A research design in which the subjects are purposely unaware of whether the substance they are administered is the drug under study or a placebo. This method serves to minimize bias on the part of research subjects in reporting their body's responses to investigational drugs.

Controlled substances

Any drugs listed on one of the "schedules" of the Controlled Substance Act (also called scheduled drugs).

Culture

The customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group.

Double-blind investigational drug study

A research design in which both the investigator(s) and the subjects are purposely unaware of whether the substance administered to a given subject is the drug under study or a placebo. This method minimizes bias on the part of both the investigator and the subject.

Drug polymorphism

Variation in response to a drug because of a patient's age, sex, size, and/or body composition.

Ethics

The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class or group of human actions.

Ethnicity

Relating to or characteristic of a human group having racial, religious, language, and other traits in common.

Ethnopharmacology

The study of the effect of ethnicity on drug responses, specifically drug absorption, metabolism, distribution, and excretion, as well as the study of genetic variations to drugs (i.e., pharmacogenetics).

Expedited drug approval

Acceleration of the usual investigational new drug approval process by the FDA, usually for drugs used to treat life-threatening diseases.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

An act that protects health insurance coverage for workers and their families when they change jobs. It also protects patient information. If confidentiality of a patient is breached, severe fines may be imposed.

Informed consent

Written permission obtained from a patient consenting to a specific procedure.

Investigational new drug (IND)

A drug not yet approved for marketing by the FDA but available for use in experiments to determine its safety and efficacy.

Investigational new drug application

An application that must be submitted to the FDA before a drug can be studied in humans.

Legend drugs

Another name for prescription drugs.

Malpractice

A special type of negligence or the failure of a professional and/or individual with specialized education and training to act in a reasonable and prudent way.

Narcotic

A legal term established under the Harrison Narcotic Act of 1914. The term is currently used in clinical settings to refer to any medically administered controlled substance and in legal settings to refer to any illicit or "street" drug; also referred to as opioid.

Negligence

The failure to act in a reasonable and prudent manner or failure of the nurse to give the care that a reasonably prudent (cautious) nurse would render or use under similar circumstances.

Orphan drugs

A special category of drugs that have been identified to help treat patients with rare diseases.

Over-the-counter drugs

Drugs available to consumers without a prescription. Also called nonprescription drugs.

Pharmacogenomics

The study of genetics in drug response.

Placebo

An inactive (inert) substance (e.g., saline, distilled water, starch, sugar) that is not a drug but is formulated to resemble a drug for research purposes.

Race

Descendants of a common ancestor; a tribe, family, or people thought to belong to the same lineage.