Written by and for nurse practitioners, and also well suited for physician's assistant students, this practical textbook focuses on what primary care providers need to know in order practice safe and effective drug therapy. With an overall emphasis on patient teaching and health promotion, Edmunds & Mayhew teaches students and practitioners how to provide effective patient teaching about medications and how to promote adherence to prescribed drug regimens. Drug coverage focuses on "key drugs" - those most commonly used and most representative of each major drug class - with particular emphasis on the top 100 most commonly prescribed drugs. The book also features integrated coverage of nationally accepted clinical and evidence-based practice guidelines. The new 4th edition features a completely new full-color design and illustration program;; coverage of new drugs, new drug classes, and new therapeutic drug uses; updated coverage of the latest national clinical and evidence-based treatment guidelines; newly integrated and highlighted coverage of drug-herb interactions; an expanded emphasis on safety and evidence-based practice, consistent with the QSEN initiative, retooled "Safety Alert!" and "Clinical Practice Alert!" highlights; expanded and an enhanced ancillary package emphasizing graduate-level QSEN KSAs and new pharmacology-focused ArchieMD animations.






A Key Drugs focus highlights the most commonly used and most representative drugs of each major drug class - with particular emphasis on the top 100 most commonly prescribed drugs.
Emphasis on patient teaching helps you communicate with patients and family caregivers to promote adherence to the drug regimen.
Emphasis on health promotion describes how to help patients stay well and improve their health, including coverage of immunizations and biologicals, vitamins, weight management, and smoking cessation.
Evidence-Based Decision-Making and Treatment Guidelines chapter (11) provides practical guidelines for using the best current research evidence to make decisions about the care of individual patients.
Extensive coverage of drug therapy for special populations such as geriatric and pediatric patients includes considerations related to age, pregnancy, race, and other factors.
UNIQUE! Coverage of prescriptive practice includes topics such as prescriptive authority, role implementation, and the role of nurses (NPs, CNMs, CRNAs, and CNSs) and physician assistants in writing prescriptions.



NEW! Full-color design and illustrations highlight the most important content.
DRUG UPDATES reflect the latest FDA-approved drugs, drug classes, and therapeutic uses.
Expanded emphasis on the QSEN priorities of safety and evidence-based practice helps you eliminate drug prescribing errors with color-highlighted Safety Alerts! and NEW Clinical Practice Alerts!
NEW section on male hormone replacement therapies adds coverage of men to that for women.
Updated evidence-based prescribing information reflects the latest national clinical practice guidelines and evidence-based treatment guidelines, including the latest clinical treatment guidelines for diabetes.
NEW! Complementary and Alternative Products tables highlight interactions with drugs, and are emphasized with a distinctive icon.
Updated Drug Overview tables are enhanced with color as well as Top 100 icons that highlight the most commonly prescribed drugs.