NURS 6521N Week 11 Assignment Off-Label Drug Use in Pediatrics

Week 11: Pediatrics

Assignment: Off-Label Drug Use in Pediatrics

Off-label use, also known as the use of medicines not prescribed for children, is a fairly common practice. Since very few medications have been specifically studied and tested on children, pediatric dosage guidelines are typically not available.

Prescribers frequently modify dosages meant for adults to account for a child’s weight when treating children. Children, however, are not merely “smaller” adults. Drugs are absorbed, distributed, metabolized, and excreted differently in adults compared to children.

Even during the stages from infancy to adolescence, children react differently. When prescribing medications to children, this raises potential safety issues. As an advanced practice nurse, you must be aware of the safety ramifications of using medications with this patient population off-label.

To Prepare

• Review the interactive media piece in this week’s Resources and reflect on the types of drugs used to treat pediatric patients with mood disorders.
• Reflect on situations in which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use.
• Think about strategies to make the off-label use and dosage of drugs safer for children from infancy to adolescence. Consider specific off-label drugs that you think require extra care and attention when used in pediatrics.

By Day 5 of Week 11

Write a 1-page narrative in APA format that addresses the following:

• Explain the circumstances under which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use. Be specific and provide examples.
• Describe strategies to make the off-label use and dosage of drugs safer for children from infancy to adolescence. Include descriptions and names of off-label drugs that require extra care and attention when used in pediatrics.

Reminder: The College of Nursing requires that all papers submitted include a title page, introduction, summary, and references. The Sample Paper provided at the Walden Writing Center offers an example of those required elements (available at http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/57.htm). All papers submitted must use this formatting.

Submission and Grading Information

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Week 11 Exam Discussion