Mr. Lepp is a 63-year-old man who was diagnosed with colon cancer several weeks ago and who is scheduled to begin chemotherapy.
NURS 6052N Identifying a Contraindication to the Administration of a Medication to the Client

NURS 6052N QUIZ 9: WALDEN UNIVERSITY

Question 6

Mr. Lepp is a 63-year-old man who was diagnosed with colon cancer several weeks ago and who is scheduled to begin chemotherapy. He reports to the nurse that he read about the need for erythropoietin in an online forum for cancer patients and wants to explore the use of epoetin alfa with his oncologist. Which of the following facts should underlie the nurse’s response to Mr. Lepp?

Response Feedback:
In patients with cancer, epoetin alfa should only be used when anemia is due to concomitant myelosuppressive chemotherapy and should be discontinued when the chemotherapy course is completed. The use of epoetin alfa during cancer may shorten survival and/or increase the risk of tumor progression or recurrence. Patients with cancer are also at risk for serious cardiovascular and thrombovascular events. Consequently, the benefits of treatment must be considered in light of these potentially adverse effects.

Identifying a Contraindication to the Administration of a Medication to the Client

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NURS 6052N Identifying a Contraindication to the Administration of a Medication to the Client
NURS 6052N Identifying a Contraindication to the Administration of a Medication to the Client

Like indications, virtually all medications have contraindications against their use. Some of the most commonly occurring contraindications for medications include:

Sensitivity or allergy to the medication
Pregnancy
Lactation
Renal disease
Hepatic disease
Prior to the administration of medications, the nurse must be fully knowledgeable about the contraindications of the medications, the client’s condition and determine whether or not the ordered medication is contraindicated for this client. When a nurse identifies that fact that a medication is contraindicated for a client, the nurse must communicate with the ordering physician in order to clarify this medication order.

Identifying Actual and Potential Incompatibilities of Prescribed Client Medications

Some medications are compatible with other medications and others are not; and some intravenous fluids and medications are compatible with each other, and others are not. Compatible medications can be safely administered in one syringe for an intramuscular medication and non compatible medications cannot be given in the same syringe. At times incompatibility is evidenced with changes such as those related to color changes and the formation of a cloudy solution or obvious precipitate, and at other times incompatibility may not be noticeable. For this reason, nurses must refer to a compatibility or incompatibility chart before they mix medications or medications and solutions.