Abbreviations for Medication Administration
Abbreviations: Medication Administration Routes .
a.d. or A.D. Right ear
a.s. or A.S. Left ear
a.u. or AU each ear or both ears
HHN Hand held nebulizer
I.D. Intradermal route
I.M. or IM Intramuscular route
I.T. Intrathecal route
I.V. or IV Intravenous route
IVP Intravenous push
IVPB Intravenous piggyback
NGT Nasogastric tube
od or O.D. Right eye
os or O.S. Left eye
ou or O.U. Each eye or both eyes
po or P.O. or PO By mouth
P.R. or PR By rectum
SQ, sub q, subcut Subcutaneous route
SL or s.l. Sublingual route
S & S Swish and swallow
V or P.V. Vaginal route
Abbreviations: Times
ac Before meals
ad lib As desired / needed
ASAP As soon as possible
b.i.d. or BID Twice daily (not the same as q 12 °)
h.s. or HS At bedtime (hour of sleep)
NOC Nighttime [archaic usage]
pc or P.C. After meals
p.r.n. or PRN As needed
q or Q Every
q AM Every morning
q hr Every hour
q.d. or QD Every day
q.i.d. or QID Four times a day
q.o.d. or QOD Every other day
q (Q) 1°, 2°, 3°, 4°, 6°, 8°, or 12°, etc Every 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12 hours. (Concept is based on a day and administering on a routine sequential basis to maintain therapeutic blood levels.)
stat or STAT Immediately! [not when you can get around to it]
t.i.d. or TID Three times daily (not the same as q 8°)