A nurse is preparing to administer cimetidine 300 mg PO twice daily. The medication is available as 300 mg tablets. How many tablets should be administered per dose?

A nurse is preparing to administer cimetidine 300 mg PO twice daily. The medication is available as 300 mg tablets. How many tablets should be administered per dose?

• A. 0.5 tablet
• B. 1 tablet
• C. 1.5 tablets
• D. 2 tablets

Answer: (B)

Calculating how many tablets to give hinges on the tablet strength versus the prescribed dose. Here, each dose requires 300 mg, and the tablet provides 300 mg. 300 mg ÷ 300 mg = 1, so one tablet is needed for each dose. Since the order is twice daily, you’d give one tablet per dose, totaling two tablets in a day. The other options would yield doses that are not equal to the prescribed 300 mg (half would be 150 mg; 1.5 would be 450 mg; 2 would be 600 mg).

Calculating how many tablets to give hinges on the tablet strength versus the prescribed dose. Here, each dose requires 300 mg, and the tablet provides 300 mg. 300 mg ÷ 300 mg = 1, so one tablet is needed for each dose. Since the order is twice daily, you’d give one tablet per dose, totaling two tablets in a day. The other options would yield doses that are not equal to the prescribed 300 mg (half would be 150 mg; 1.5 would be 450 mg; 2 would be 600 mg).