The nurse prepares to change a patient's medication from an IV to an oral form and notes that the oral form is ordered in a higher dose. The nurse understands that this is due to differences in:

Question

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Bioavailability refers to the amount of a drug that enters circulation and produces an active effect. IV medications have 100% bioavailability as they are directly infused into the bloodstream, whereas oral medications may be subject to first-pass metabolism and have lower bioavailability. Therefore, to achieve the same therapeutic effect, a higher dose may be necessary for oral medication.

The Nurse Prepares to Change a Patient's Medication from an IV