Link a vital sign check to a medication
F
Frida Poot
Some medications need a vital sign checked right before they’re given: blood pressure before a blood pressure medication, or blood sugar before insulin. Today there’s no way to connect the two. Staff either type the reading in the medication notes, where it doesn’t reach the Vital Signs record, or record it separately in Vital Signs with no link to the dose.
Requested:
- On a medication, choose a vital sign to check before giving it (for example, blood pressure or blood glucose).
When completing the eMAR task, staff enter the reading as part of the administration.
- The reading saves to the participant’s Vital Signs record and shows next to that dose on the eMAR and MAR export.
- Optional: flag the dose if the reading is out of range, so staff know to hold it or check with the nurse.
Nurses check these vitals every day before giving certain medications. Linking them avoids entering the same reading twice and keeps the reading with the dose it was taken for.