Medication & IV Admin (saunders NCLEX book)

Question 1

A physician orders 1000 mL of 0.9% normal saline (NS) to run over 8 hours. The drop (gt) factor is 10 drops (gtt) per 1 mL. The nurse adjusts the flow rate to run at how many gtt per minute?

1. 15 gtt/minute
2. 17 gtt/minute
3. 21 gtt/minute
4. 23 gtt/minute

Answer 1

21 gtt/minute
**Rationale: The prescribed 1000 mL is to be infused over 8 hours. Follow the formula and multiply 1000 mL by 10 (gt factor). Then divide the result by 480 minutes (8 hours  60 minutes). The infusion is to run at 20.8 or 21 gtt/minute.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

1000 mL 10 gtt = 10,000 = 20.8 or 21 gtt/minute
480 minutes 480

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an intravenous infusion. Be sure to convert 8 hours to minutes and then verify your answer using a calculator. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.

Question 2

A physician prescribes meperidine hydrochloride (Demerol), 40 mg intramuscularly stat, for a postoperative client in pain. The medication label states meperidine hydrochloride, 50 mg/mL. How many mL will the nurse prepare to administer to the client?

1. 0.5 mL
2. 0.6 mL
3. 0.8 mL
4. 1 mL

Answer 2

0. 8 mL
   * *Rationale: Use the formula for calculating the medication dosage. In this question, it is not necessary to perform a conversion.

Formula:

Desired  mL = mL per dose
Available

40 mg  1 mL = 0.8 mL
50 mg

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for the calculation of the correct dose. It is not necessary to perform a conversion with this problem. Recheck your work using a calculator, and make sure that the answer makes sense. If you had difficulty with this question, review medication calculation problems.

Question 3

A physician prescribes atenolol (Tenormin) 0.05 g by mouth daily. The label on the medication bottle states atenolol 25-mg tablets. How many tablets will the nurse administer to the client?

1. 0.5 tablet
2. 1 tablet
3. 2 tablets
4. 3 tablets

Answer 3

2 tablets
**Rationale: Formula: Convert 0.05 g to mg. In the metric system, to convert the larger unit of measure to the smaller unit of measure, multiply by 1000 or move the decimal three places to the right. Therefore, 0.05 g = 50 mg. The nurse will administer two tablets.
Test-Taking Strategy: In this medication calculation problem it is necessary to first convert grams to milligrams. Once you have done the conversion and reread the medication calculation problem, you will know that two tablets is the correct answer. If you had difficulty with this question, review medication calculation problems.

Question 4

A client is to receive 1000 mL of 5% dextrose in water (D5W) at a rate of 100 mL/hour. The drop (gt) factor is 10 drops (gtt) per mL. The nurse adjusts the flow rate to deliver how many gtt per minute?

1. 10 gtt
2. 13 gtt
3. 17 gtt
4. 20 gtt

Answer 4

17 gtt
**Rationale: The first step is to determine how many hours the intravenous (IV) infusion will last. This requires simple division of the total volume of mL to be infused (1000 mL) by the total mL per hour (100 mL), which is 10 hours. Then convert hours to minutes, which is 600 minutes. Next, use the formula to calculate the flow rate.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

1000 mL  10 gtt = 10,000 = 16.6 or 17 gtt/minute
600 minutes 600

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an IV. Be sure to convert 10 hours to minutes, and then verify your answer using a calculator. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.

Question 5

A physician orders an intramuscular (IM) dose of 250,000 units of penicillin G benzathine (Bicillin). The label on the 10-mL ampule sent from the pharmacy reads penicillin G benzathine 300,000 units/mL. How much medication will the nurse prepare to administer the correct dose?

1. 0.25 mL
2. 0.8 mL
3. 1.5 mL
4. 8 mL

Answer 5

0. 8 mL
   * *Rationale: Use the formula for calculating the appropriate medication dosage. In this question, it is not necessary to perform a conversion. The data needed to perform this calculation are the physician’s order (250,000 units of penicillin G benzathine) and the available amount of 300,000 units/mL.

Formula:

Desired  mL = mL per dose
Available

250,000 units  1 mL = mL per dose
300,000 units

250,000 = 0.83 mL
300,000

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for the calculation of the correct dose. It is not necessary to perform a conversion with this problem. Recheck your work using a calculator, and make sure that the answer makes sense. If you had difficulty with this question, review medication calculation problems.

Question 6

A physician orders a bolus of 500 mL of 0.9% normal saline (NS) to run over 4 hours. The drop (gt) factor is 10 drops (gtt) per 1 mL. The nurse plans to adjust the flow rate at how many gtt per minute?

1. 15 gtt
2. 17 gtt
3. 19 gtt
4. 21 gtt

Answer 6

21 gtt
**Rationale: The prescribed 500 mL is to be infused over 4 hours. Follow the formula and multiply 500 mL by 10 (gt factor). Then, divide the result by 240 minutes (4 hours  60 minutes). The infusion is to run at 20.8 or 21 gtt/minute.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

500 mL  10 gtt = 5000 = 20.8 or 21 gtt/minute
240 minutes 240

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an intravenous (IV) infusion. Be sure to convert 4 hours to minutes, and then verify your answer using a calculator. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.

Question 7

A physician prescribes digoxin (Lanoxin), 0.25 mg by mouth (PO) daily, for a client with congestive heart failure. The medication label states 0.125 mg per tablet. How many tablet(s) will the nurse administer to the client?

Answer 7

2 tablets
**Rationale: Use the formula for calculating the appropriate medication dosage. In this question, it is not necessary to perform a conversion.

Formula:

Desired  1 tablet = Tablet per dose
Available

0. 25 mg  1 tablet = 2 tablets
1. 125 mg

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for the calculation of the correct dose. It is not necessary to perform a conversion with this problem. Recheck your work using a calculator, and make sure that the answer makes sense. If you had difficulty with this question, review medication calculation problems.

Question 8

Ampicillin sodium (Omnipen) 250 mg in 50 mL of normal saline (NS) is being administered over a period of 30 minutes. The drop (gt) factor is 10 drops (gtt) per mL. The nurse is asked to check the flow rate of the infusion. The nurse determines that the infusion is running at the prescribed rate if the infusion is delivering how many gtt per minute? (Round answer to the nearest whole number.)

Answer 8

17 gtt/minute
**Rationale: The prescribed 50 mL is to be infused over 30 minutes. Follow the formula and multiply 50 mL by 10 (gt factor). Then divide the result by 30 minutes. Round answer to the nearest whole number. The infusion is to run at 17 gtt/minute.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

50 mL  10 gtt = 500 = 16.6 or 17 gtt/minute
30 minutes 30

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an intravenous (IV) infusion. Then verify your answer using a calculator. Remember to round the answer to the nearest whole number. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.

Question 9

A physician prescribes 1000 mL of normal saline (NS) to be infused over a period of 10 hours. The drop (gt) factor is 15 drops (gtt) per mL. The nurse adjusts the flow rate at how many gtt per minute?

Answer 9

25 gtt per minute
**Rationale: The prescribed 1000 mL is to be infused over 10 hours. Follow the formula and multiply 1000 mL by 15 (gt factor). Then divide the result by 600 minutes (10 hours  60 minutes). The infusion is to run at 25 gtt/minute.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

1000 mL  15 gtt = 15,000 = 25 gtt/minute
600 minutes 600

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an intravenous (IV) infusion. Be sure to convert 10 hours to minutes, and then verify your answer using a calculator. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.

Question 10

A physician orders 3000 mL of 5% dextrose in water (D5W) to run over a 24-hour period. The drop (gt) factor is 15 drops (gtt) per 1 mL. The nurse adjusts the flow rate to run at how many gtt per minute? (Round answer to the nearest whole number.)

Answer 10

31 gtt per minute
**Rationale: The prescribed 3000 mL is to be infused over 24 hours. Follow the formula and multiply 3000 mL by 15 (gt factor). Then divide the result by 1440 minutes (24 hours  60 minutes). The infusion is to run at 31 gtt/minute.

Formula:

Total volume in mL  gt factor = Flow rate in gtt per minute
Time in minutes

3000 mL  15 gtt = 45,000 = 31.2 or 31 gtt/minute
1440 minutes 1440

Test-Taking Strategy: Follow the formula for calculating the infusion rate for an intravenous (IV) infusion. Be sure to convert 24 hours to minutes, and then verify your answer using a calculator. Review the formula for calculating infusion rates if you had difficulty with this question.