NVQ 3- Dilution Simulation....can anyone help?

[stephanie]

Hi I am currently doing Unit 1..... does anyone have an idea for a simple simulation for a dilution, (mixing 2 ingredients together). We don't do any of this in my pharmacy.

Kind Regards
Stephanie

[welshoney]

Hi stephanie...what antibiotics, Zineryt lotion...If not you can use a pharmacists question using the case study for mixing creams, from your first year..can't remember wich module it is think it is 10 or 11 my books packed away as I'm in the middle of moving.

but that's what I used. And as long as all the criteria and the ranges and the K's are covered it was fine

[Web Ferret]

Agree Zineryt, Topicycline or antiobitic reconstitutions are the best real world examples as no one makes anything anymore.
There's always 1% menthol in aqueous cream as a simple "simulation example".
5g menthol crystals to 500g aqueous cream though since the arjun cream and others came out no -one makes this anymore either.

[Fleegle]

I still do the occasional Betnovate cream (X%) in Aqueous cream..Could use that as an example, I suppose. Expiry date is notional to say the least though. Some GPs still refuse to acknowledge the existence of Betnovate RD....

Fleeg.

[razorbladekisses]

For the dilution I did a simulation of 1% menthol in aqueous cream and making up Zineryt lotion. When I received it back the pharmacist marking it set me another simulation to cover the dilution criteria. This is what it said...

It is Sat. afternoon when a Mum brings in a prescription for a young child. The Rx calls for 150ml Paracetamol susp. 120mg/5ml qds prn and 100ml codeine paed. linctus 3mg/5ml, 5ml tds prn. You have the paracetamol in stock but only have Galcodeine 15mg/5. It is late and Mum is keen to get the medicine tonight. You offer to make the solution up from the adult version, and she is happy with that option.

Explain how you would calculate and prepare the codeine paed. solution.

[admin]

It is Sat. afternoon when a Mum brings in a prescription for a young child. The Rx calls for 150ml Paracetamol susp. 120mg/5ml qds prn and 100ml codeine paed. linctus 3mg/5ml, 5ml tds prn. You have the paracetamol in stock but only have Galcodeine 15mg/5. It is late and Mum is keen to get the medicine tonight. You offer to make the solution up from the adult version, and she is happy with that option.

Explain how you would calculate and prepare the codeine paed. solution.

Well you need to find out how much of the stock solution (the adult one) you will need to use in the final 100mls to get the correct strenght. I'd approach it like this: -

In 100 mls of 3mg/5mls (the paed strength we need) there are: -

(100/5) x 3 = 60mg Codeine

So we need 60mg from the adult version.

(60/15) x 5 = 20mls

we need to take 20mls of the adult version and dilute add to it 80mls syrup, shake it and there you go.

Its nice and easy to check in your head as 15/3 = 5 so the adul;t version is 5 times as strong as the paed so needs diluting five fold.

Hope this helps a little

[Fleegle]

Would 20ml full-strength and a 1ml-calibrated oral syringe be out of the question?

Just a suggestion...(to the marking pharmacist)...

[helmay]

Hi can anyone just clarify if I dilute Galcodeine to Paed Codeine, what would the expiry date be on the product? Will it be discard after 14 days?
Thanks

[DavidS]

Hi can anyone just clarify if I dilute Galcodeine to Paed Codeine, what would the expiry date be on the product? Will it be discard after 14 days?
Thanks

Gosh, I'm well out of date! I don't think anyone dilutes these things nowadays, particularly as they do a galcodine paediatric. What would you use? - sorbitol solution?

When we used to dilute with syrup (not Galcodine, but more generally), we would put 28 days. If the same preservative was in the syrup as in the manufactured product it would be longer, my memory tells me three months but that could be wrong.

Its ages since I've seen one of those dilution charts from the NPA. You could send it off to a specials lab and they would charge a couple of hundred to do it properly!

[helmay]

I need to know as I have to do a dilution for my NVQ 3. logbook and I'm just not sure what the expiry date should say on a dilution. 14 or 28 days.