Dosage and Calculation Mistakes with Medication Essay

Dosage and Calculation Mistakes with Medication - Essay Example At two months of age, the infant was been admitted to the healthcare facility to undergo a pyloric stenosis repair. The attending physician ordered a 0.2-0.4 mg morphine sulfate to help alleviate the post-operation pain. The administering nurse normally uses the 5mg/ml morphine sulfate. However, due to the absence of the usual 5mg/ml vial, she decides on using the 10mg/ml vial but at a reduced quantity of 0.04ml as per her calculations. She double-checks her calculation and dosage with another nurse for a second opinion. However, the over prescription error occurs during the administration of the morphine sulfate when she draws 0.4ml instead of the intended 0.04ml (Keyes, 1998). Shortly after the administration of the ten times high dose, the infant suffers from respiratory difficulty in his mother’s arms. Further inspection by the nurse reveals that the infant is experiencing a respiratory arrest. The nurse if forced to administer a narcotic antagonist and resuscitate the infant. However, after successfully stabilizing the infant, the medical team does not realize that the cause of the infant’s respiratory arrest was a direct result of the high morphine sulfate dosage. They make an incorrect assessment of the course of the respiratory arrest. The infant suffers another respiratory failure because of receiving a high dose of morphine sulfate again. The administering nurse and the medical staff are forced to take the infant for further observation and diagnosis. They later realize that there was an over prescription of the infant’s medication. Therefore, they had to change the high dose to a correct one. The infant was later discharged i n good health. The healthcare facility handles the conduct and act of its staff who are on duty. Therefore, the parents of the infant sued the hospital for malpractice and negligent cause of emotional stress (Keyes, 1998). Medication