Critical Thinking in Medication Administration

For a complete list of accreditations for this course, please see the accreditation information box below the author’s bio.  All states (with the exception of Hawaii) recognize our courses for accredited continuing nursing education, CNE, contact hours.

The Role of Critical Thinking in Medication Administration

Administering medications to patients is part of the plan of care in nursing practice no matter the care setting utilized. In today’s healthcare environment of ever expanding nursing roles and practice settings along with a wide variety of medication classes, newly created and off label drugs plus the use of multiple medication therapies per patient, medication administration safety standards mandate more scrutiny than ever.

To avoid medication errors and maintain professional standards of care, critical thinking must be integrated thoroughly and consistently into this area of practice. The technical aspects of handling and dispensing drugs must not be the sole focus of medication administration.

This course is designed to assist nurses in establishing best practices in medication administration safety through the development of multi-faceted critical thinking skills. These skills will enable recognition of all factors impacting safe nursing practice in any part of medication administration and prevent negative patient outcomes. You will also discover how critical thinking templates can be created to assist with promoting and developing critical thinking through the use of a case study.