U&Es Cheat Sheet

Sodium 128. Potassium 6.1. Creatinine up from last time. Is it a phone call, a repeat, or a 999? This one-page cheat sheet gives you the answer without opening the guideline.

What's on it:

• Five analytes, five colour bands – Na, K, urea, creatinine, eGFR: typical range, low/high signs and symptoms, culprit drugs, and what to do

• Thresholds that matter – the sodium and potassium cut-offs for "stop the drug", "repeat in a week" and "same-day admission"

• Urea vs creatinine – how to tell dehydration from true kidney injury

• AKI and CKD at a glance – the AKI definition and the eGFR bands where doses change

• Monitoring table – ACEi/ARB, spironolactone, diuretics, metformin, DOACs, lithium, digoxin, SSRIs, methotrexate, SGLT2i: when to check and what to act on

• Same-day action box and sick day rules

• Four mnemonics – TAPS (sodium-droppers), A-STAN (hyperkalaemia), triple whammy, DAMNS

Who it's for: community and GP pharmacists, prescribers, PCN and care-home pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and anyone revising for the IP course or OSCEs.