Pharmacy changes for fever, pain medications and range orders

Easy ordering for multiple pain meds; range orders gone

Starting June 24, two things will change about medication orders (both P&T Committee approved):

1. The MAR will grow when medication administration hierarchies are introduced for fever, and for mild, moderate and severe pain. These will allow easy ordering for multiple medications for fever or for each level of pain to exist on the MAR while avoiding extra pages to determine which med you want administered first. To see this, you can click on one of these two links:

• Administration Hierarchy: Fever
• Administration Hierarchy: Pain

2. Scheduled range orders (like gabapentin 300-600 mg TID or Norco 1-2 tabs BID or Vistaril 25-50 mg at HS) are no longer allowed. When we see a scheduled range order, we will either:

• Break it into two orders (if we know how the patient chooses their dose) OR
• Take the higher dose away (the Vistaril 25-50 mg every HS will become 25 mg at HS)

Pharmacists will not bother you with a page to ask permission or tell you what we have done. You can see details at this link: Scheduled Range Order Resolution. If you have comments or questions, call me at 504-814-9960 or email me at matthew.tanner@salemhealth.org.