Dosage for solid medicines

Woman organising her daily tablets at home
Learn more about how to calculate the required dosage of tablets to give to a patient, using the ‘PEACE’ problem-solving method. This resource looks at the different ways you might use mental arithmetic to work out and check your answer.

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Resource
Available to RCN members

Who is this resource for?

This resource is aimed at nurses and nursing support workers across all settings and levels of practice, including students of health, social work and care professions. 

What will this resource give me?

  • the steps you need to take when starting to calculate your answer
  • what questions you need to ask yourself before you approach your calculation
  • the different ways you might use mental arithmetic to calculate dosage
  • mental arithmetic examples to test your knowledge
  • how to use a formula approach (‘The Golden Formula’) to calculate dosage
  • the importance of checking your answer and the best ways to do this.

Resource last reviewed

12 Feb 2024

Resource lead

The RCN delivers quality-assured and up-to-date resources for the nursing workforce. Reviewed annually in line with the RCN Quality Assurance policy, all RCN Learn resources meet the RCN’s Nine Quality Standards.