Question

The nurse has a prescription to infuse 100 mL of antibiotic solution by the intravenous (IV) route over 1 hour. The tubing administration set has a drop factor of 10 drops (gtt) per mL. The nurse would regulate the roller clamp on the infusion set to deliver how many drops per minute?

a) 10 drops per minute
b) 15 drops per minute
c) 20 drops per minute
d) 25 drops per minute

Answer 1

To regulate the roller clamp on the infusion set to deliver the correct number of drops per minute, we need to use the formula drops per minute = Total volume (mL) x drop factor / Time (minutes). In this case, the nurse would regulate the roller clamp to deliver approximately 17 drops per minute.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the number of drops per minute, we need to use the formula:
Drops per minute = Total volume (mL) x drop factor / Time (minutes)

In this case, the total volume is 100 mL and the drop factor is 10 drops/mL. The time is given as 1 hour, but we need to convert it to minutes, so 1 hour is equal to 60 minutes.

Plugging the values into the formula:
Drops per minute = 100 mL x 10 drops/mL / 60 minutes = 16.7 drops per minute

Rounding to the nearest whole number, the nurse would regulate the roller clamp on the infusion set to deliver approximately 17 drops per minute.