Question

You have orders to administer 60mg of Drug X IV Stat. Your available supply is a * prefilled syringe containing Drug X 20mg per mL. How many mL will you administer?

A. 1mg
B. 1 mL
C. 3 mg
D. 3 mL

Answer 1

Calculating the volume of Drug X to administer involves dividing the ordered dosage (60mg) by the drug concentration (20mg/mL). The result is 3mL, which is the amount to be administered intravenously.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question asks how many milliliters (mL) of Drug X to administer if the doctor's orders are 60mg and the available supply is a prefilled syringe with a concentration of 20mg per mL. To solve, use the formula Dosage ordered (mg) ÷ Concentration (mg/mL), which gives us 60mg ÷ 20mg/mL, equating to 3 mL.

Step-by-step explanation:

1. Identify dosage to be administered: 60mg.
2. Identify concentration of the drug: 20mg per mL.
3. Apply the unit conversion: Divide the dosage by the concentration to find the volume in mL.
4. Calculation: 60mg ÷ 20mg/mL = 3mL.

This conversion is crucial in fields like nursing or pharmacy where precise medication dosages are paramount. A similar process can be used regardless of the medication, whether it's converting aspirin dosage from grams to milligrams or determining the volume of a liquid medication like a cough syrup based on the concentration.