Reviewer: Carol E Agana, MNSc, RNP, APRN (University of Arkansas)
Description: Updated every year, this drug handbook for nurses and other clinicians lists over 8,000 medications in alphabetical order, making it easy to use. Black box warnings are highlighted to bring attention to them, while an updated appendix and weekly updates are available with the online toolkit.
Purpose: It is intended as a quick reference for persons either prescribing or administering medications. It is excellent for healthcare students.
Audience: The intended audience is students in healthcare, nurses administering medications in any healthcare environment, and teachers who can use it as a reference in classes related to medications or patients. Of the many contributors and consultants, only one is a nurse while the rest are pharmacists. Perhaps it would be helpful to have more nurses contribute.
Features: The medication listings include usual dosages, indications for use, adverse reactions, interactions, contraindications, black box warnings, nursing considerations, and patient teaching. This update includes new medications, an insert with photos of commonly prescribed medications for easy identification, and online resources. This handbook changes little from year to year, but it is thorough.
Assessment: A drug handbook is required of nursing students, who use it as a resource for learning about medications and how to administer them. Graduate nurses also use them and one can generally be found on any hospital floor. There are several similar books, such as Davis's Drug Guide for Nurses, 16th edition, Vallerand (F. A. Davis, 2018). To me, they all look alike and contain the same information.
