Peer-supported medication calculation training program

Participants who received traditional lecture-based instruction

The intervention consisted of a peer-supported education program on medication dosage calculation, implemented over three weeks with five 60-minute sessions. In Week 1, four mentor students-senior nursing students with prior training in medication calculations and a GPA above 3.0-received refresher instruction from the course instructor. The training covered decimals, percentages, unit conversions, weight-based and non-weight-based dose calculations, and infusion pump adjustments, followed by sample problem-solving activities. The intervention group was divided into four subgroups, each consisting of 7-8 students, and each was assigned a consistent mentor. Each session included 30 minutes of individual and peer problem-solving followed by 30 minutes of guided mentoring. The course instructor provided supervision and feedback throughout the sessions. During Weeks 2 and 3, students practiced numerical and medication dosage calculations through peer-supported exercises.

Medication Calculation Ability Assessment Form (Pre-Test, Post-Test): The pre-test consisted of eight questions. The posttest consisted of twenty questions, including additional questions similar to those in the pretest. The questions covered the following categories:

• Dosage calculation for solid and liquid oral medications (3 questions in the pretest, 8 questions in the posttest),
• Dosage calculation for injections (3 questions in the pretest, 7 questions in the posttest),
• Calculation of percentage solutions and intravenous fluids (2 questions in the pretest, 5 questions in the posttest).

Each correct answer was scored; the participants' correct answers were averaged to convert the score into a percentage. Thus, a medication calculation skill score ranging from 0% to 100% was obtained for each participant.

Numerical Skills Assessment Form (Pre-Test, Post-Test): The pre-test consisted of five questions. The post-test consisted of 10 questions, including additional questions similar to those in the pre-test. The questions covered basic numerical skills, including addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, decimals, percentage calculations, and unit conversions. Each correct answer was scored, and the percentage score was converted by averaging the number of correct answers. Thus, a numerical skill score ranging from 0% to 100% was obtained for each participant.