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Nursing vocabulary · Medication Administration

Administer

Meaning in nursing, with examples

/ədˈmɪnɪstər/verbCore term

In nursing, administer means: To give a medicine or treatment to a patient, by any route, according to a prescription or protocol.

In Turkish: uygulamak, vermek

How it is used

A formal word used in policies, notes and exams: 'administer medication', 'administered as prescribed'. On the ward nurses usually just say 'give': 'I gave her the paracetamol at ten.' The noun phrase 'medication administration' appears in training and job descriptions.

Example sentences

  1. Only registered nurses can administer IV antibiotics on this ward.

  2. Enoxaparin was administered subcutaneously at 18:00.

Common collocations

  • administer medication
  • administer a dose
  • administer oxygen
  • safely administer
  • doseThe amount of a medicine given at one time, such as 500 mg, or the total amount given over a period.
  • routeThe way a medicine enters the body, for example by mouth (oral), into a vein (IV), into a muscle (IM) or under the skin (subcutaneous).
  • five rightsA checklist nurses use before giving any medicine: the right patient, the right drug, the right dose, the right route and the right time.
  • medication chartThe form or electronic record where a patient's medicines are prescribed and where nurses sign for each dose they give or do not give.

More terms: Medication Administration

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.