The Route of Drug Administration

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Body
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Drug administration means the flow of drugs into the body. Two main routes encompass, “Enteral”, which is the “administration of drugs orally”. Concurrently, “Parenteral” entails piercing the skin. Enteral is the simplest mode of administration that entails swallowing or placing drugs underneath the tongue. Oral delivery drugs to the stomach occur after swallowing, whereas putting drugs under the tongue allows direct assimilation into the fluids (Finkel, Clark, Champe, et al., 2008). Dosage types taken orally comprise solution and solids.

Body

Important issues are subject to consideration, before administering drugs orally. The condition of the patient, which influences the capacity to take drugs, is paramount. Ingestion of drugs requires that patients retain the drug after intake; furthermore, the drug ought to be present in the gastro intestines.

Any condition that hinders this has to be addressed. It is vital to consider the gastric emptying interlude of the patient, availability of provisions, and the intestinal or gastric pH. Variations in any of the factors affect the movement and strength of drugs thus lowering their effectiveness (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2006).

Before administering the drug via the mouth, it is rational to carry out patient education to determine whether the patient can endure taking the drug orally. Patients may lack the capacity to take something via the mouth. For example, when a patient is vomiting or unconscious, he may not take anything. In this case, a decision needs to use other routes of medicine administration is paramount. There are certain cases when it is irrational to administer drugs orally.

For example, when patient education reveals a condition that hinders oral intake of drugs, then it necessitates the use of other routes (Aschenbrenner & Venable, 2008).

The advantages of administering drugs orally lie in its simplicity and convenience since the patient does it single-handedly. This is because specialized paraphernalia or instruction is not required. Most patients accept drugs administered orally because they consume minimal time. Drug administration via the mouth has its negatives as manifest in factors that can hinder absorption.

Some patients encounter concerns swallowing the prescribed amount of drugs such techniques pose management troubles amongst elderly patients. Intestinal fluids pH also reduces the effectiveness of the drug. The existence or deficiency of food in the body affects the drugs, for example, food reduces the rate of incorporation. The occurrence of alcohol also hinder absorption as it slows down food movement (Brick & Erickson, 1999)

These drugs are subject to destruction by gastric acids or enzymes; furthermore, other drugs may not be absorbed. The slow movement of food in the intestines where drug assimilation occurs makes the dissolution and absorption process difficult. This is frequent with medicine that is enteric-coated. Medical practitioners sometimes find it necessary to use this method of drug administration. This situation is always true because this is the simplest, common, and convenient method of administering drugs. Apart from this, the practitioners also get to use this method when the patient’s health condition allows it.

Conclusion

From the above discussions, it is considerable to note that, oral administration of drugs remains an elementary technique. The method requires that the patient’s condition sustain the intake of substances. The method has several realistic advantages over thus making it a preferred way of issuing drugs. The disadvantages are also worrying, since the speed of dissolution and absorption may be too low. Many people choose to administer drugs orally since it eliminates the need for hospitals.

References

Arcangelo, V. & Peterson, A. (2006). Pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice: a practical approach. 2^nd Ed. Pennsylvania, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Aschenbrenner, D. & Venable, S. (2008). Drug Therapy in Nursing. 3^rd Ed. Pennsylvania, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Brick, J. & Erickson, C. (1999). Drugs, the brain, and behavior: the pharmacology of abuse and dependence. New York, NY: Routledge.

Finkel, R., Clark, M., Champe, P., Cubeddu, L. (2008). Pharmacology. Pennsylvania, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

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The Route of Drug Administration

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