Patient Controlled Analgesia (PCA) is the technique whereby patients can self-administer parenteral analgesics. PCA devices need the following orders: 1) PCA dose in mg or mcg (‘patient initiated dose,’ ‘patient demand dose,’ or ‘bolus dose’), 2) Delay Interval (’lockout’) - in minutes (period during which the patient cannot obtain additional demand medication), 3) Continuous infusion (CI) Rate in mg/hr or mcg/hr (if CI is used), and 4) Hour Limit - maximum amount of drug to be dispensed in a defined period of time.
Patient Controlled Analgesia (PCA) is the technique whereby patients can self-administer parenteral analgesics.
PCA devices need the following orders: 1) PCA dose in mg or mcg (‘patient initiated dose,’ ‘patient demand dose,’ or ‘bolus dose’), 2) Delay Interval (’lockout’) - in minutes (period during which the patient cannot obtain additional demand medication), 3) Continuous infusion (CI) Rate in mg/hr or mcg/hr (if CI is used), and 4) Hour Limit - maximum amount of drug to be dispensed in a defined period of time.