A patient requesting pain medication asks that the medication be provided in the form of an injection because it works better. The patient is prescribed oral pain medication. What should the nurse respond to this patient?
a. "Injected medications last longer than oral medications."
b. "Injected medications work better than oral medications."
c. "Injected medications are painful and don't absorb consistently from the muscle."
d. "I'll contact your physician to get an order for the medication to be given as an injection."
ANS: C
Intramuscular (IM) injections are not recommended because they are painful, have unreliable absorption from the muscle, and have a lag time to peak effect and rapid falloff compared with oral administration. A. Oral administration is the first choice if possible, or whenever the IV route is not an option. B. The IV route has the most rapid onset of action and is the preferred route for postoperative administration. D. The physician does not need to be contacted for an order change.
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