Question

A patient has continuous bladder irrigation. Which should the nurse do with the irrigant on the I&O sheet when calculating the lfuid balance for this patient?

1. Add it to the oral intake column
2. Deduct it from the total urine output
3. Subtract it from the intravenous flow sheet as output
4. Document the intake hourly in the urine output column

Answer 1

The nurse should document the volume of irrigant as intake and subtract it from the total urine output to calculate the actual urine production for a patient with continuous bladder irrigation.

Step-by-step explanation:

When managing a patient with continuous bladder irrigation, it is important for the nurse to accurately calculate the patient's fluid balance. Fluid balance is maintained by matching the water input (from intravenous fluids, drinking, and food) with the body's water output, which includes not just urine but also other losses such as sweat and breath.

For a patient with continuous bladder irrigation, the nurse should document the volume of the irrigation fluid used as intake in the intake and output (I&O) records. This is necessary because the irrigation fluid contributes to the total fluid intake of the patient. Since urine production can be affected by hydration levels, and because the kidneys will filter and produce a variable amount of urine based on these levels, accurate documentation of both intake and output is critical for assessing the patient's fluid balance. The nurse should then subtract the amount of irrigant from the total urine output to determine the actual urine production of the patient.