Before administering a dose calculated from stock medication, what should you verify?

• A. Confirm the calculated dose, the amount to administer, and the units, rounding as needed.
• B. Administer the dose and verify later.
• C. Check the color of the bottle.
• D. Ask the patient for their preferred dose.

Answer: (A)

Double-checking every part of a calculated dose before giving it is essential for patient safety. When you prepare from stock, you translate the prescribed amount into a specific volume or number of units. You must verify three things: the calculated dose itself, the exact amount you will administer, and the units in which that dose is expressed. If rounding is required, apply the facility’s rounding rules and confirm the final value matches what you will administer. This careful verification helps prevent dosing errors that can occur from arithmetic mistakes, concentration misreads, or unit mismatches. For example, if the order is 25 mg and the stock is 10 mg/mL, the volume to give is 2.5 mL; confirming this volume and its units before administration ensures the patient receives the correct amount.

Color of the bottle or asking the patient for a preferred dose aren’t reliable or appropriate ways to determine what to administer, since the dose must come from the prescription and the calculated concentration.