How to fugure out days supplied while entering perscriptions in a pharmacy?

Question

I just started working at Walgreens in the pharmacy...and I love the job but it's always so busy that there is little time for other workers to show me how exactly to figure out the days supplied while entering perscriptions.

Ok so I understand that 5mL = 1 teaspoon, right? But how would you figure out ex: G 1 to 2 tea po bid with the quantity being 445?

And inhalers such as the Pro Air...if it has 200 Puffs how do you know how many days that will last?

And eye/ ear drops...

This is driving me crazy! lol
Please help!

Answer 1

For most people, ProAir is used on a prn basis. I normally give a 30 day supply.
If you are given a variable amount dose, like 1-2 tablets per day, use the higher amount to determine day supply. So, in this example, use 2 tablets.
With the eye/ear drops, it depends. Some like Xalatan come in 1 month bottles, and others, like the antibiotic drops, are used for a specific period of time.

Answer 2

You have to place the days supplied as opposed to just quantity provided? When I worked in a pharmacy, I had to place the quantity in the computer and the days supply was automatically calculated.

Anyway, I'll try to help.

For your first example, lets do the minimum amount, 1 teaspoons BID quantity 445. That is 10mL a day, so a 44.5 day supply. At 2 teaspoons BID, that's 20 mL a day, so that's basically a 22 day supply.

From my understanding, a 200 puff inhaler is a 30 day supply.