Specialty Certified Medical Assistant Pharmacology and Medication Administration 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What are the 'Seven Rights' of medication administration?
- Right patient, right drug, right dose, right route, right time, right reason, right documentation (Correct answer)
- Right drug, right dose, right time, right color, right vein, right syringe, right temperature
- Right patient, right drug, right nurse, right chart, right time, right storage, right label
- Right dose, right route, right patient, right hospital, right form, right frequency, right age
Correct answer: Right patient, right drug, right dose, right route, right time, right reason, right documentation
The Seven Rights are: right patient, drug, dose, route, time, reason, and documentation — a checklist to prevent medication errors.
Question 2: Which route of administration has the fastest onset of action?
- Oral (PO)
- Intramuscular (IM)
- Subcutaneous (SQ)
- Intravenous (IV) (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Intravenous (IV)
Intravenous administration delivers medication directly into the bloodstream, providing the fastest and most predictable onset of action.
Question 3: A medical assistant is preparing to administer an IM injection to an adult. Which site is most commonly used?
- Deltoid muscle (Correct answer)
- Vastus lateralis
- Dorsogluteal site
- Ventrogluteal site
Correct answer: Deltoid muscle
The deltoid muscle in the upper arm is the most common IM injection site for adults due to ease of access for small-volume medications and vaccines.
Question 4: What does the abbreviation 'PRN' mean on a medication order?
- By mouth only
- As needed (Correct answer)
- Before meals
- Every night at bedtime
Correct answer: As needed
PRN (pro re nata) means 'as needed,' indicating the medication should be given only when the patient meets specified criteria.
Question 5: Which schedule of controlled substance has the highest potential for abuse and no accepted medical use in the US?
- Schedule II
- Schedule III
- Schedule I (Correct answer)
- Schedule IV
Correct answer: Schedule I
Schedule I substances have the highest abuse potential, no accepted medical use, and lack accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
Question 6: A patient is prescribed amoxicillin and reports an allergy to penicillin. What should the medical assistant do?
- Administer the medication since amoxicillin is not penicillin
- Hold the medication and notify the provider immediately (Correct answer)
- Ask the patient to take half the dose to test for reaction
- Document the allergy and proceed as instructed
Correct answer: Hold the medication and notify the provider immediately
Amoxicillin is a penicillin-class antibiotic; cross-reactivity is possible, so the prescriber must be notified before administration.
Specialty Certified Medical Assistant Pharmacology and Medication Administration 1
What are the 'Seven Rights' of medication administration?