Pharmacology in Nursing Process and Pharmacokinetics & Pharmacodynamics Vocabulary

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the nursing process, drug interactions, adverse effects, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics as presented in Nursing Pharmacology.

Nursing Process

A systemic, rational method of planning and providing nursing care designed to identify actual or potential health problems, establish care plans, deliver interventions, and evaluate outcome success.

Subjective Data

Health history information provided directly by the patient or family, such as a pain assessment.

Objective Data

Physical examination findings and laboratory values gathered by healthcare professionals, such as vital signs, complete blood count (CBC), or diagnostic X-rays.

Nursing Diagnosis

A clinical judgment regarding an actual or potential health problem that prioritizes the level of importance and immediacy to the patient's clinical condition.

NANDA

North American Nursing Diagnosis Association; an organization that provides a standard wording list for nursing diagnoses.

Planning Phase

The step in the nursing process where the nurse creates an individualized care plan by prioritizing diagnoses, formulating desired outcomes, and selecting nursing interventions.

Implementation Phase

The phase that puts the nursing care plan into action through drug administration, patient teaching, and documentation.

Five Rights of Medication Administration

A critical safety standard comprising right patient, right drug, right dose, right time, and right route.

Evaluation Phase

The phase in which the nurse collects data to compare current health status with desired outcomes, determining drug efficacy and whether care plan modifications are needed.

Chemical Name

A precise description of a drug's chemical structure, such as 2 (p-isobutylphenyl) propionic acid.

Generic Name

The official non-proprietary name of a drug used on NCLEX examinations, such as Ibuprophen.

Trade Name

The brand name given to a drug by its manufacturer for marketing and daily clinical practice, such as Motrin or Advil.

Adverse Effects

Undesirable and potentially harmful drug responses that can occur even at therapeutic or normal doses.

Blood Dyscrasias

A condition caused by certain drugs that results in a decreased production of erythrocytes, leukocytes, and/or platelets.

Side Effects

Predictable and anticipated secondary drug effects distinguished from adverse effects by their mild severity.

Paradoxical Reaction

A specific drug reaction in which the effect produced is the exact opposite of the intended therapeutic response.

Idiosyncratic Reaction

An uncommon drug reaction often caused by underlying genetic differences among individuals.

Hypersensitivity Reaction

An allergic reaction triggered when the immune system recognizes a drug as a foreign invader, releasing histamine and cellular mediators.

Toxic Reaction

An adverse response that occurs when a patient is overdosed with a drug, causing it to act as a poison.

Nephrotoxic

Term describing a drug or substance that causes toxic damage to the kidneys.

Cardiotoxic

Term describing a drug or substance that causes toxic damage to cardiac muscle or the heart.

Neurotoxic

Term describing a drug or substance that causes toxic damage to neurons.

Hepatotoxic

Term describing a drug or substance that causes toxic damage to the liver.

Ototoxic

Term describing a drug or substance that causes toxic damage to hearing structures.

Polypharmacy

The simultaneous use of multiple different drugs having conflicting effects, typically prescribed by different doctors and filled at different pharmacies.

Synergistic Interaction

A pharmacodynamic interaction where the combined effect of two drugs is greater than the sum of their individual effects ($1+1>2$).

Additive Interaction

A pharmacodynamic interaction where the combined effect of two drugs equals the sum of their individual effects ($1+1=2$).

Antagonistic Interaction

A pharmacodynamic interaction where one drug inhibits or reduces the action of another drug ($1+1<1$).

Teratogen

A drug or agent that induces structural birth defects in an unborn fetus.

Mutagen

A drug or substance that induces alterations in the genetic composition of living organisms.

Carcinogen

A drug or substance that causes or promotes the development of cancer.

Pharmacokinetics

The study of the movement of a drug through the body, broken down into four stages: absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion.

Absorption

The movement of a drug from its site of administration into the bloodstream.

Distribution

The transportation of a drug from the site of absorption or bloodstream to the target tissues and site of action.

Drug Protein Binding

The attachment of drug molecules to plasma proteins like albumin; bound drugs cannot cross capillary membranes, leaving only free unbound drugs to act on target tissues.

Bioavailability

The amount or percentage of an administered drug that successfully reaches its site of action.

First Pass Effect

The initial metabolism of an oral drug in the liver via hepatic-portal circulation before it can reach systemic circulation.

Metabolism

Biotransformation process primarily occurring in the liver that alters the chemical structure and activity of a drug to prepare it for excretion.

Prodrug

A compound that possesses no initial pharmacological activity until it is metabolized into an active form within the body.

Cytochrome P450

CYP450; a system of hepatic microsomal isoenzymes responsible for metabolizing drugs and mediating drug-drug or drug-food interactions.

Elimination

The process of removing drugs and their metabolites from the body, primarily carried out by the kidneys via glomerular filtration, tubular secretion, and partial reabsorption.

Minimum Effective Concentration

The minimum plasma drug concentration required to produce a therapeutic response.

Therapeutic Range

The plasma drug concentration zone between the minimum effective concentration and toxic concentration where the drug safely exerts its desired effect.

Toxic Concentration

The plasma level of a drug that results in serious adverse effects.

Plasma Half-life

The length of time ($t_{1/2}$) required for the plasma concentration of a drug to decrease by half after administration.

Steady State

A plateau drug concentration reached through repeated dosing when the administration rate equals the elimination rate, usually requiring about 4 half-lives.

Pharmacodynamics

The study of what a drug does to the body, including mechanisms of action and biological tissue responses.

Agonist

A drug or chemical that binds to and activates a receptor to trigger a biological response.

Antagonist

A drug or chemical that binds to a receptor to block or inhibit a biological response.

Efficacy

The maximal response or effect that a drug is capable of producing.

Potency

The amount or concentration of a drug required to elicit a desired therapeutic response.

Affinity

The degree of attraction or binding strength between a drug and its specific receptor.

Intrinsic Activity

The ability of a bound drug to activate a receptor and produce a functional response.