Drug Card Template (Printable PDF & GoodNotes)
A drug card for nursing students, with lines for the drug's generic and brand names and its class, then six boxes: action, uses, dose and route, side effects, contraindications, and nursing considerations and teaching.
- Printable US Letter8.5 × 11 in, white paper
- Printable A4210 × 297 mm, white paper
- iPad / GoodNotesAlso Notability and Noteshelf
- E-ink tabletreMarkable, Kindle Scribe, Boox
Free PDF, 1 page, undated. No sign-up needed.
Shown for iPad in the Ocean Calm theme. Printable downloads use white paper (there's a dark mode preview below); the e-ink version is black and white.
One page, ready to fill in.
- Write-in lines for drug (generic / brand) and class
- Boxes for action, uses, dose & route, side effects, contraindications and nursing considerations & teaching
- Undated, so you can print or duplicate it as often as you need
Who it's for
Nursing students, pharmacy technicians, medical students and new graduate nurses learning the medicines on their unit.
Getting the most from a drug card.
Lead with the generic name
Write the generic name first and the brand in brackets. Exams and most clinical settings use generic names.
Learn the class first
Drugs in the same class usually share actions, side effects and nursing considerations. Knowing the class does half the work for every new drug.
Keep action short
One or two sentences on how it works is enough to reason through the rest of the card.
Focus on nursing considerations
What to check before giving it, what to monitor after, and what to teach the patient. That's what clinical instructors ask about.
Use a reference you trust
Fill cards from your programme's drug guide or an up-to-date reference, and follow local protocols in practice.
Quiz yourself with the class line
Cover everything except the drug name and try to say its class, action and two key nursing considerations. Short daily self-tests stick better than rereading cards.
Included in 2 planners
This template is a page in each of these planners. Open one to see everything else that comes with it.
Get it inside a full hyperlinked planner
The nursing school planner includes this page alongside dated month and week pages for your year, with side tabs and links between every page. Pick your device and theme, preview it free, and pay only when it's right.
- Dated pages for the whole year
- Tap a tab or a date to jump there
- GoodNotes, Notability, Samsung Notes, e-ink and print sizes
Opens the nursing school planner with the Nursing School section switched on.
Or read about the nursing school planner first.
What goes on a nursing drug card?
The drug name and class, how it works, what it's for, dose and route, side effects, contraindications and nursing considerations, including patient teaching.
Can I use it on clinical placement?
Many students prepare cards before placement. Always check doses and instructions against current local references.
How many drug cards should I make?
As many as you need. The nursing school planner includes 20; the medical school planner includes 12.
Does it work on GoodNotes?
Yes. Make a notebook of drug cards and use GoodNotes' search to find a drug by name.
Should I make a card for every drug?
Start with the drugs you see most on placement and the ones on your course list. Learning by class lets you cover more drugs with fewer cards.
