Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts/Ethical and Legal Aspects of Prescribing

How do beta-blockers work? What exactly do antibiotics do to the bacteria they target? What effects does an anti-depressant have on blood flow?

Questions like these are related to the underlying pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes of pharmacotherapeutics. As an advanced practice nurse, understanding these fundamental pharmacotherapeutic concepts is important to ensure that the prescription drugs you recommend for your patients will be safe and effective to treat and/or manage their symptoms. Additionally, as the advanced practice nurse, it is your responsibility to ensure that when prescribing prescription drugs, you adhere to the ethical and legal principles set forth for prescribing drugs as an added layer of protection and safety for the patients you will treat. NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts

This week, you will analyze factors that may influence pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics processes of a patient and assess the details of a personalized plan of care that you develop based on influencing factors and patient history. You will also evaluate and analyze ethical and legal implications and practices related to prescribing drugs, including disclosure and nondisclosure, and analyze the process of writing prescriptions to avoid medication errors.

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Learning Objectives

Students will:

• Analyze factors that influence pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes in patients
• Assess patient factors and history to develop personalized plans of care
• Evaluate ethical and legal implications related to prescribing drugs
• Analyze ethical and legal practices of prescribing drugs
• Analyze strategies to address disclosure and nondisclosure
• Justify advanced practice nurse strategies to guide prescription drug decision-making
• Analyze the process of writing prescriptions to avoid medication errors

Learning Resources – NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts

Required Readings (click to expand/reduce) 

Rosenthal, L. D., & Burchum, J. R. (2018). Lehne’s pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice providers. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier.

• Chapter 1, “Prescriptive Authority” (pp. 1–3)
• Chapter 2, “Rational Drug Selection and Prescription Writing” (pp. 5–9)
• Chapter 3, “Promoting Positive Outcomes of Drug Therapy” (pp. 11–16)
• Chapter 4, “Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Drug Interactions” (pp. 17–40)
• Chapter 5, “Adverse Drug Reactions and Medical Errors” (pp. 41–49)
• Chapter 6, “Individual Variation in Drug Response” (pp. 51–56)

American Geriatrics Society 2019 Beers Criteria Update Expert Panel. (2019). American Geriatrics Society 2019 updated AGS Beers criteria for potentially inappropriate medication use in older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 67(4), 674–694. doi:10.1111/jgs.15767

American Geriatrics Society 2019 updated AGS Beers criteria for potentially inappropriate medication use in older adults by American Geriatrics Society, in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Vol. 67/Issue 4. Copyright 2019 by Blackwell Publishing. Reprinted by permission of Blackwell Publishing via the Copyright Clearance Center.

 

This article is an update to the Beers Criteria, which includes lists of potentially inappropriate medications to be avoided in older adults as well as newly added criteria that lists select drugs that should be avoided or have their dose adjusted based on the individual’s kidney function and select drug-drug interactions documented to be associated with harms in older adults.

Drug Enforcement Administration. (n.d.-a). Code of federal regulations. Retrieved February 1, 2019, from https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/21cfr/cfr/1300/1300_01.htm

 

This website outlines the code of federal regulations for prescription drugs.

Drug Enforcement Administration. (n.d.-b). Mid-level practitioners authorization by state. Retrieved May 13, 2019 from http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugreg/practioners/index.html

 

This website outlines the schedules for controlled substances, including prescriptive authority for each schedule.

Drug Enforcement Administration. (2006). Practitioner’s manual. Retrieved from http://www.legalsideofpain.com/uploads/pract_manual090506.pdf
This manual is a resource for practitioners who prescribe, dispense, and administer controlled substances. It provides information on general requirements, security issues, recordkeeping, prescription requirements, and addiction treatment programs.

Drug Enforcement Administration. (n.d.-c). Registration. Retrieved February 1, 2019, from https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugreg/index.html

 

This website details key aspects of drug registration.

Fowler, M. D. M., & American Nurses Association. (2015). Guide to the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements: Development, Interpretation, and Application (2nd ed.). Silver Spring, Maryland: American Nurses Association.

This resource introduces the code of ethics for nurses and highlights critical aspects for ethical guideline development, interpretation, and application in practice.

Institute for Safe Medication Practices. (2017). List of error-prone abbreviations, symbols, and dose designations. Retrieved from https://www.ismp.org/recommendations/error-prone-abbreviations-list

 

This website provides a list of prescription-writing abbreviations that might lead to misinterpretation, as well as suggestions for preventing resulting errors.

Ladd, E., & Hoyt, A. (2016). Shedding light on nurse practitioner prescribing. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 12(3), 166–173. doi:10.1016/j.nurpra.2015.09.17

This article provides NPs with information regarding state-based laws for NP prescribing.

Sabatino, J. A., Pruchnicki, M. C., Sevin, A. M., Barker, E., Green, C. G., & Porter, K. (2017). Improving prescribing practices: A pharmacist‐led educational intervention for nurse practitioner students. Journal of the American Association ofNursePractitioners, 29(5), 248–254. doi:10.1002/2327-6924.12446

The authors of this article assess the impact of a pharmacist‐led educational intervention on family nurse practitioner (FNP) students’ prescribing skills, perception of preparedness to prescribe, and perception of pharmacist as collaborator.

Required Media (click to expand/reduce) 

Introduction to Advanced Pharmacology

Meet Dr. Terry Buttaro, associate professor of practice at Simmons College of Nursing and Health Sciences as she discusses the importance of pharmacology for the advanced practice nurse. (8m)

Discussion: Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics

When selecting drugs and determining dosages for patients, it is essential to consider individual patient factors that might impact the patient’s pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes. These patient factors include genetics, gender, ethnicity, age, behavior (i.e., diet, nutrition, smoking, alcohol, illicit drug abuse), and/or pathophysiological changes due to disease. NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts

For this Discussion, you reflect on a case from your past clinical experiences and consider how a patient’s pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes may alter his or her response to a drug.

To Prepare

• Review the Resources for this module and consider the principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.
• Reflect on your experiences, observations, and/or clinical practices from the last 5 years and think about how pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic factors altered his or her anticipated response to a drug.
• Consider factors that might have influenced the patient’s pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes, such as genetics (including pharmacogenetics), gender, ethnicity, age, behavior, and/or possible pathophysiological changes due to disease.
• Think about a personalized plan of care based on these influencing factors and patient history in your case study.

By Day 3 of Week 1

Post a description of the patient case from your experiences, observations, and/or clinical practice from the last 5 years. Then, describe factors that might have influenced pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes of the patient you identified. Finally, explain details of the personalized plan of care that you would develop based on influencing factors and patient history in your case. Be specific and provide examples.

By Day 6 of Week 1

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses and respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days by suggesting additional patient factors that might have interfered with the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes of the patients they described. In addition, suggest how the personalized plan of care might change if the age of the patient were different and/or if the patient had a comorbid condition, such as renal failure, heart failure, or liver failure.

Note: For this Discussion, you are required to complete your initial post before you will be able to view and respond to your colleagues’ postings. Begin by clicking on the “Post to Discussion Question” link, and then select “Create Thread” to complete your initial post. Remember, once you click on Submit, you cannot delete or edit your own posts, and you cannot post anonymously. Please check your post carefully before clicking on Submit!

Example Discussion

A 77-year-old female is having shortness of breath and on assessment the patient is noted to have crackles in bilateral upper lungs on auscultation. The patient has a history of Congestive Heart Failure (CHF), Type II Diabetes, and Chronic Renal Failure. The patient received dialysis the previous day. The patient stated that she had been extremely thirsty, and her daughter-in-law bought her some sodas and she drank the soda and knew that she exceeded her daily fluid intake of 1 liter.

Factors that influence pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes

Pharmacokinetic is the study if drug movement throughout the body (Rodenthal, L.D., & Burchum, J. R., 2018).  The four processes of pharmacokinetic is absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (Smith, Y., 2019). Scientists study the pharmacokinetic of drugs to enhance the efficiency of drug delivery and to decrease any risk of drug toxicity. Drugs are absorbed most where the blood flow is greater.  Lipid soluble medications cross the cell membrane most readily. Factors that affect drug absorption includes lipophilicity, solubility, ionization, degradation, metabolism, and physiology. With aging, there is a reduction in the person’s lean body mass this can result in the volume of distribution for some drugs causing unpredicting effects in the frail older person. A decrease in in volume of distribution can result in an increase of plasma concentration.  In Metabolism the medication is metabolized by the liver, kidneys, or other sites, but mostly by the kidneys so that why it is especially important to monitor the kidney function of the patient presented in the scenario.  If the kidneys are not functioning the medication is not excreted from the body properly which can lead to toxicity. Pharmacodynamic is defined as the science or study how the body reacts to drugs (Your Dictionary. 2020). Pharmacodynamic can be affected by physiologic changes due to disease process, aging, other drugs, or genetic mutations (Hallworth, M., 2013). NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts

Personalized plan of care developed based on influencing factors and patient history

            The Physician ordered Furosemide (Lasix) 80 mg Intravenous (IV). Lasix is a loop diuretic which are called such because their action site is the loop of Henle.  Before administering any medication there are several things to consider such as ‘is this the right medication for the situation’ or ‘is it the right dosage and route?’ The nurse must know the patient’s medical history and other medication that the patient is taking to make sure that there will not be any negative drug interactions. The patient’s blood pressure was taken because Lasix can cause a drop in blood pressure. Lasix can also cause an excessive loss in sodium and water, so it is important to ensure that the patient is getting an adequate amount of fluids but to exceed the restricted daily intake. If Lasix is IV push, administer slowly. Potassium and Magnesium is loss through excretion of urine therefore labs needs be collected to be monitored. If the potassium and magnesium is too low, it can cause heart arrhythmia. Potassium and Magnesium protocols are in place if they must be replaced. Patient is to be monitored on telemetry to monitor heart rhythm when receiving IV Potassium. Lasix can increase blood glucose and patient is diabetic, so blood glucose is to be monitored. Urine output is to be monitored because of CHF and chronic renal failure. The patient and the family members will be educated on the importance of adhering to a fluid restriction with a patient who have a history of CHF and chronic kidney failure.

References:

Rodenthal, L. & Burchum, J. 2018. Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Drug Interactions. Lehner’s pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice providers. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier. p. 17

Hallworth, M., (2013). Therapeutic drug monitoring: Pharmacodynamic Factors. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/pharmocodynamics

Smith, Y., (2019). Pharmacokinetics. Retrieved from https://www.news-medical.net/amp/health/Pharmacokinetics.aspx

Your Dictionary. (2020). Pharmacodynamics. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/pharmacodynamics

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 1 Discussion Rubric

Post by Day 3 of Week 1 and Respond by Day 6 of Week 1

To Participate in this Discussion:

Week 1 Discussion

Assignment: Ethical and Legal Implications of Prescribing Drugs

As an advanced practice nurse prescribing drugs, you are held accountable for people’s lives every day. Patients and their families will often place trust in you because of your position. With this trust comes power and responsibility, as well as an ethical and legal obligation to “do no harm.” It is important that you are aware of current professional, legal, and ethical standards for advanced practice nurses with prescriptive authority. Additionally, it is important to ensure that the treatment plans and administration/prescribing of drugs is in accordance with the regulations of the state in which you practice. Understanding how these regulations may affect the prescribing of certain drugs in different states may have a significant impact on your patient’s treatment plan. In this Assignment, you explore ethical and legal implications of scenarios and consider how to appropriately respond.

To Prepare

• Review the Resources for this module and consider the legal and ethical implications of prescribing prescription drugs, disclosure, and nondisclosure.
• Review the scenario assigned by your Instructor for this Assignment.
• Search specific laws and standards for prescribing prescription drugs and for addressing medication errors for your state or region, and reflect on these as you review the scenario assigned by your Instructor.
• Consider the ethical and legal implications of the scenario for all stakeholders involved, such as the prescriber, pharmacist, patient, and patient’s family.
• Think about two strategies that you, as an advanced practice nurse, would use to guide your ethically and legally responsible decision-making in this scenario, including whether you would disclose any medication errors.

By Day 7 of Week 1

Write a 2- to 3-page paper that addresses the following:

• Explain the ethical and legal implications of the scenario you selected on all stakeholders involved, such as the prescriber, pharmacist, patient, and patient’s family.
• Describe strategies to address disclosure and nondisclosure as identified in the scenario you selected. Be sure to reference laws specific to your state. NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts
• Explain two strategies that you, as an advanced practice nurse, would use to guide your decision making in this scenario, including whether you would disclose your error. Be sure to justify your explanation.
• Explain the process of writing prescriptions, including strategies to minimize medication errors. NURS 6521N Week 1: Basic Pharmacotherapeutic Concepts

Reminder: The College of Nursing requires that all papers submitted include a title page, introduction, summary, and references. The College of Nursing Writing Template with Instructions provided at the Walden Writing Center offers an example of those required elements (available at https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/templates/general#s-lg-box-20293632). All papers submitted must use this formatting.

Submission and Grading Information

To submit your completed Assignment for review and grading, do the following:

• Please save your Assignment using the naming convention “WK1Assgn+last name+first initial.(extension)” as the name.
• Click the Week 1 Assignment Rubric to review the Grading Criteria for the Assignment.
• Click the Week 1 Assignment link. You will also be able to “View Rubric” for grading criteria from this area.
• Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK1Assgn+last name+first initial.(extension)” and click Open.
• If applicable: From the Plagiarism Tools area, click the checkbox for I agree to submit my paper(s) to the Global Reference Database.
• Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.
  

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Grading Criteria

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Week 1 Assignment Rubric

Check Your Assignment Draft for Authenticity

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Submit your Week 1 Assignment draft and review the originality report.

Submit Your Assignment by Day 7 of Week 1

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Week 1 Assignment