General Delegation

• Licensed nurses may delegate certain medication administration tasks to unlicensed personnel which have the required training to do so. Some of these tasks include scheduled medications, measuring liquid medications, and crushing of tablet medications, according to Section 20:48:04.01:15 of South Dakota Administrative Rules.
  
  

Routine Delegation

• South Dakota law regulates which medication administration tasks may be delegated routinely by nurses. The initial dose of medication not previously administered to the patient may not be routinely delegated without written documentation verifying safety of delegation, according to South Dakota Administrative Rule Section 20:48:04.01:11. This also applies to medication on an as-needed basis.
  
  

Prohibited Delegation

• A licensed nurse in South Dakota is prohibited from delegating certain medication administration tasks to unlicensed personnel. This includes administration of Schedule II controlled substances, pursuant to Section 20:48:04.01:12 of South Dakota Administrative Rules. Licensed nurses may not delegate administration of medications via injection, tube insertion into body cavities and complex inhalation methods. Unlicensed personnel may not calculate medication dose.