Pharmacy As A Profession
1
Core features of a profession:
Trait Theory
2
3
Applying the criteria of “Trait Theory” to
pharmacy

Pharmacists → no. of
professional traits.

So, pharmacy is a
profession.
4
5
Promotion of pharmacists as 1st port of
call for health issues
1st port of call without
appointments
Professional knowledge
Pt’s symptoms
Self Tx
Referral to other services
6
List of medical abbreviations
7
Abbrev.
Meaning
a.c.
Before food
a.d.
Right ear
ad lib.
Freely as wanted
a.l.
Left ear
alt. die
Every other day
alt. h.
Every other hour
a.m.
Morning
a.n.
Before the night
aq.
Water
8
a.s.
Left ear
a.u.
Each ear
aurist.
Ear drops
b.d. or bd
Twice a day
b.i.d. or bid
Twice a day
gtt.
Drop
h.
Hour
h.d.
At bedtime
h.s.
At bedtime
i.d.
during the day
i.d.
the same
i.d.
Intradermal
mane
In the morning
narist.
Nasal drops
9
nocte
At night
o.c.
Eye ointment
o.d. or od
Daily
o.d.
Right eye
o.l.
Left eye
o.m.
In the morning
o.n.
At night
o.r.
Right eye
o.s.
Left eye
o.u.
Each eye
p.c.
After food
p.m.
Afternoon
10
p.o. or po
p.r.
Rx or
Orally
Rectally
p.r.n.
As occasion requires (as needed)
p.v.
Vaginally
q.
every
q.2.h.
Every two hours
q.4.h.
Every four hours
q.6.h.
Every six hours
q.8.h.
Every eight hours
q.d. or qd
Every day
q.d.s.
Four times a day
q.h.
Every hour, hourly
q.i.d. or qid
Four times a day
q.q.h.
Every four hours
q.s.
A sufficient quantity
s.i.d. or sid
Once a day
Sig. or S.
Write on the label
11
SL.
Sublingual, under the tongue
S.O.S.
When required
Stat.
Immediately, with no delay
t.d.s.
Three times a day
t.i.d. or tid
Three times a day
top.
Topically, applied to the skin
ut dict. or u.d.
As directed
ung.
Ointment
12
Do-not-use list (official in the United States)
Do not use
Potential problem
Use instead
U (unit)
Mistaken for “0” (zero), the number “4” (four)
or “cc”
unit
IU (International Unit)
Mistaken for IV (intravenous) or the number
10 (ten)
International Unit
Q.D., QD, q.d., qd (daily)
Q.O.D., QOD, q.o.d, qod (every other day)
Mistaken for each other. Period after the Q
mistaken for "I" and
the "O" mistaken for "I" (q.i.d. is four times a
day dosing)
daily
every other day
Trailing zero (X.0 mg)
Lack of leading zero (.X mg)
Decimal point is missed
X mg
0.X mg
MS
Can mean morphine sulfate or magnesium
sulfate
morphine sulfate
MSO4 and MgSO4
Confused for one another
morphine sulphate and magnesium sulfate
For possible future inclusion in the official list
Do not use
Potential problem
Use instead
> (greater than)
< (less than)
Misinterpreted as the number "7" (seven) or
the letter "L".
Confused for one another
"greater than"
"less than"
Abbreviations for drug names
Misinterpreted due to similar abbreviations for
multiple drugs
Write drug names in full
Apothecary units
Unfamiliar to many practitioners. Confused
with metric units
metric units
@
Mistaken for the number "2" (two)
at
cc
Mistaken for U (units) when poorly written
mL or milliliters
µg
Mistaken for mg (milligrams) resulting in one
thousandfold overdose
mcg or micrograms
13