What should a nurse verify before administering medication?

Verifying the five rights of medication administration—right patient, right medication, right dose, right route, and right time—is essential for ensuring patient safety and effective treatment. Each component plays a crucial role in preventing medication errors and potential harm to the patient.

For example, confirming the right patient ensures that the medication is administered to the correct individual, thereby avoiding serious consequences that could arise from administering a medication intended for someone else. Additionally, verifying that the right medication and the right dose are chosen decreases the risk of overdose or underdose. Ensuring the right route addresses how the medication is delivered, which can significantly affect its effectiveness, and confirming the right time guarantees that medications are given according to the prescribed schedule, optimizing therapeutic outcomes.

In contrast, assessing the patient's emotional state, while important for holistic care, does not specifically relate to the medication administration process itself. Reviewing insurance information or a doctor's treatment preferences is not directly relevant to the successful and safe administration of medication and falls outside of the immediate responsibilities a nurse has at the point of medication delivery. Therefore, focusing on the five rights is a fundamental practice that protects the patient's health and well-being.