One teaspoon is equal to?

Appeared in: Bihar CHO - 2021

Explanation

The universally accepted standard in both medical and culinary fields is that one teaspoon (tsp) is equivalent to 5 milliliters (mL).
This conversion is a foundational piece of knowledge for safe and accurate medication dosage calculation, particularly for liquid formulations.
Healthcare professionals rely on this standardized equivalent for prescribing, dispensing, and administering medications.

Option A: 15 mL is the standard equivalent for one tablespoon (tbsp), not one teaspoon. A tablespoon is three times larger than a teaspoon.
Option B: 5 mL is an arbitrary value and does not correspond to any standard household measurement like a teaspoon.
Option C: 1 mL is a much smaller volume than a teaspoon. It is equivalent to approximately 15-20 drops (gtt), depending on the liquid's viscosity.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Medication Dosage Calculation: Household to Metric Conversion as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Patient safety is the primary reason this conversion is critical. Using non-standardized kitchen spoons can lead to significant under-dosing (reducing therapeutic effect) or over-dosing (increasing risk of toxicity).
This knowledge is essential for patient education. Nurses must instruct patients and caregivers to discard household spoons for medication and use only calibrated devices provided by the pharmacy.
In pediatrics, dosage calculations are often based on weight, resulting in very specific doses. A small error from using an incorrect measuring device can have serious adverse effects on a child.

How to Approach the Question

Identify the core of the question: It's a factual recall question about a standard unit conversion.
Recognize the units involved: a household measure (teaspoon) and a metric measure (milliliter).
Access your memory for the standard medical and pharmaceutical equivalents.
Recall that 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5 mL.
Carefully check the options to find the one that matches the recalled fact.
Mentally discard common distractors, such as the conversion for a tablespoon (15 mL), to confirm your choice.

Concept Tested & Keywords

QOxWeDJY5bTBJsIGSXsIPU

E6 Nursing Fundamentals Potter Perry 12e Part 3 p. 140-142

E6 Nursing Fundamentals Taylor pp. 1059-1061, 848-850

Practise the full Bihar CHO - 2021

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.