A client is to receive one liter of normal saline intravenously over six hours. The tubing delivers 15 drops per milliliter.
How many drops per minute should a nurse regulate the infusion to deliver?

To find the rate of the pump in ml/hour, you need to first convert the client’s weight from pounds to kilograms. You can do this by dividing the weight by 2.2046 or multiplying it by 0.454.

For example:

297 lbs / 2.2046 = 134.72 kg or 297 lbs x 0.454 = 134.72 kg

Then, you need to multiply the client’s weight in kilograms by the ordered dose in units/kg/hour to get the total units per hour.

For example:

134.72 kg x 12 units/kg/hour = 1616.64 units/hour

Next, you need to set up a proportion to find the rate of the pump in ml/hour using the supplied medication concentration.

For example:

25,000 units / 500 ml = 1616.64 units / X ml Cross-multiply and solve for X:

25,000 x X = 808320 X = 808320 / 25000 X = 32.33 ml/hour

Finally, you need to round your answer to the nearest tenth of a ml/hour as per the medication administration guidelines.

For example:

32.33 ml/hour ≈ 32.3 ml/hour

Therefore, the rate of the pump is 32.3 ml/hour.

Choice A is wrong because it uses a different conversion factor for pounds to kilograms (1 lb = 0.5 kg) which is not accurate.

Choice C is wrong because it uses a different ordered dose (10 units/kg/hour) which is not what the provider has written.

Choice D is wrong because it uses a different supplied medication concentration (20,000 units in 500 ml) which is not what is available.

This is because the pH of gastric contents is acidic (less than 5.5) and can indicate that the tube is in the stomach. This method is predictive of the correct placement of a nasogastric tube.

Choice A is wrong because fluoroscopy is not the most reliable method to confirm the correct placement of a nasogastric tube. It is an imaging technique that uses X-rays to show the movement of the tube, but it is not always available or feasible.

Choice C is wrong because injecting air and listening for gurgling sounds is not a reliable method to confirm the correct placement of a nasogastric tube. It can cause false-positive results and does not differentiate between the stomach and the respiratory tract.

Choice D is wrong because observing for bubbles after placing the end of the tube in a cup of water is not a reliable method to confirm the correct placement of a nasogastric tube. It can also cause false-positive results and does not differentiate between the stomach and the respiratory tract.