Which term describes giving a medication that was not prescribed for the resident?

• A. Wrong Time
• B. Omission
• C. Unordered Drug
• D. Wrong Dosage Form

Answer: (C)

Giving a medication that wasn’t prescribed is an unordered drug. In med administration, every drug given should be listed on the resident’s orders and medication record. When you give something that isn’t on that record, you’re bypassing the prescribed plan and introducing an unapproved drug into the resident’s system, which can lead to unexpected effects or harm.

This is different from giving a drug at the wrong time (the same drug is prescribed, but not at the scheduled moment), omitting a prescribed dose (the intended med isn’t given at all), or using a different dosage form (the same drug but in a different form). An unordered drug breaks the fundamental requirement to administer only what’s been prescribed, so it’s treated as a serious medication safety issue that must be stopped and properly addressed with the physician or the healthcare team.