Author Description

From basic pharmacology principles to the latest advancements in drug therapy, PHARMACOLOGY FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS provides comprehensive coverage of medication that todays student needs to know. Part I, Basic Concepts, discusses pharmacology fundamentals and issues important in todays healthcare settings. These include legal foundations, prescription drugs and alternative medications. Principles of drug action, life span aspects of drug therapy, and substance misuse and abuse. Part II, Clinical Aspects, includes drugs classified by body system and drug function. * Body system format facilitates easy access to the content and student learning. * Clearly-written discussions of drug groups and individual drugs provide the most thorough and comprehensive information available. * Key Drugs are thoroughly reviewed, highlighted with an icon, and listed in the chapter openers for quick reference to help students learn the most important drugs in a class. * Chapter 3: "Over-the-Counter and Alternative Medications" addresses timely issues in today's health care settings related to self-medication with traditional or non-traditional therapies. * Chapter 5: "Lifespan Aspects of Drug Therapy" discusses important implications for geriatric and pediatric patients, as well as considerations for pregnant and breast-feeding patients. * Management of Drug Overdose and Pregnancy Safety boxes alert the student to important information and guidelines regarding overdoses for specific medications. * Drug reference tables and over 100 illustrations help explain how drugs work in the body. * Drug name pronunciations teach the student the correct drug name. * Chapter overviews, objectives, key terms with page numbers, summaries, and review questions encourage the student to focus on key content and use the book more effectively as a learning tool. * Serious drug interactions are highlighted to alert the student to those drug interactions that the health care professional must take