Worked example

Oral dose - tablets - practice problem 12

The prescriber orders 0.25 mg of digoxin PO. The pharmacy stocks digoxin in 0.25 mg tablets.

Ordered dose0.25 mg

On hand0.25 mg per tablet

How many tablets should the nurse give?

Answer: 1 tablet

Step-by-step solution

1. Identify what you have and what you want

Have: 0.25 mg per tablet · Want: 0.25 mg

2. Set up dimensional analysis so mg cancels

0.25 mg × ( 1 tablet ÷ 0.25 mg )

3. Cancel mg and solve

= ( 0.25 × 1 ) ÷ 0.25 tablet

= 1 tablet