Question

A nurse is preparing to administer dextrose 5% in water (D5W) 400 mL IV to infuse over 1 hr. The drop factor of the manual IV tubing is 15gtt/mL. The nurse should set the manual IV infusion to deliver how many gatt/min?

a) 20 gtt/min
b) 30 gtt/min
c) 40 gtt/min
d) 50 gtt/min
e) 60 gtt/min

Answer 1

The nurse should set the manual IV infusion to deliver 100 gtt/min, but this option is not listed in the provided choices, indicating a potential error in the question or answer choices.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the rate at which the nurse should set the IV infusion of D5W, you need to use the formula:

Rate (gtt/min) = (Volume (mL) × Drop Factor (gtt/mL)) / Time (min)

So, for an infusion of 400 mL of D5W over 1 hour with a drop factor of 15 gtt/mL, the calculation would be:

Rate (gtt/min) = (400 mL × 15 gtt/mL) / 60 min

= 100 gtt/min.

However, the options provided do not include 100 gtt/min, which suggests there may be a mistake in the question or the answer choices. It's essential to double-check the calculations and the infusion orders to ensure the correct rate is set.