134 - Basic Pharmacology

Course Overview

This course has been developed to provide an understanding of:

• the basic principles of pharmacology,
• definitions used in pharmacology and their related concepts, and
• mechanism of action and potential adverse effects of different drugs used in the management of cardiovascular disease.

This module contains the following 3 modules:

Module 1: Principles and definitions

In this section you’ll gain an understanding of basic definitions used in pharmacology and their related concepts.

Module 2: Antihypertensive drugs

The goal of antihypertensive therapy is to reduce cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and renal morbidity and mortality. In this section we’ll look at antihypertensive drugs in more detail.

Module 3: Other Drugs

In this section we’ll explore other types of drugs that may be used in the management of cardiovascular disease. We look at antianginal, anticoagulant, antiplatelet and lipid-lowering drugs in more detail.

Estimated Duration

Approximately 1 hour

Learning Outcomes

After completing this course you’ll be able to:

• differentiate between pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics,
• identify molecular targets of drug action, and
• understand the following terms; adverse or side effects, agonist, antagonist, and drug interactions.

Target Audience

Suitable for nurses working in primary health care including general practice.

What you’ll get

This education program consists of 3 modules. Each module has specific learning objectives and a small assessment at the end.

You will need to complete every page of all 3 modules as well as receive a score of at least 80% in each module assessment in order to successfully complete this program.

Once you have successfully completed the program a Certificate of Completion will be available to view or download from your list of courses in the ‘My Training’ section.