Final answer:
The dose of Zofran prepared for the patient will be 32mg diluted in 50mL normal saline, and the infusion rate will be set to 200 mL/hr to deliver the dose over the specified 15 minutes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question concerns the dosage calculation and infusion rate of a medication called Zofran (ondansetron). When the order is for Zofran 32mg and the available medication is Ondansetron 40mg in a 20ml vial, the entire 20ml of the vial needs to be used because the vial contains the exact amount needed (32mg of the 40mg available).
To find the infusion rate, dilute the medication in 50mL of 0.9% NS (normal saline) as stated and infuse over 15 minutes. To calculate the infusion rate in mL/hr, convert minutes to hours and set up a ratio. As there are 60 minutes in an hour, you would calculate (50 mL / 15 min) × (60 min / 1 hr), which equals 200 mL per hour.
Therefore, the dose of Zofran prepared for the patient will be the full amount available in the vial, 32mg in 20ml, diluted to 50ml. The infusion rate will be set at 200 mL/hr to deliver the medication over the prescribed 15-minute timeframe.