A nurse is preparing a heparin infusion for a client who was admitted to the facility with deep-vein thrombosis.

The prescription reads: 25,000 units of heparin in 0.9% sodium chloride 250 mL to infuse at 800 units/hr. What should be the infusion pump rate?

(Round the answer to the nearest whole number. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)

Choice A rationale

While elevating the head of the bed to 30 degrees can be helpful in some procedures, it is not the most crucial step when inserting a nasogastric (NG) tube. The primary goal is to ensure the tube enters the esophagus and not the trachea.

Choice B rationale

If a patient begins to gag or choke during the procedure, it may indicate that the tube has entered the trachea instead of the esophagus. However, removing the NG tube immediately might not always be the best course of action. It’s important to first assess the situation, reposition the patient, and attempt to advance the tube while the patient swallows.

Choice C rationale

Applying suction to the NG tube prior to insertion is not a standard practice. Suction is typically applied after the NG tube has been properly placed and secured, to remove gastric contents for therapeutic (decompression) or diagnostic (analysis) purposes.

Choice D rationale

Encouraging the patient to take sips of water can facilitate the insertion of the NG tube into the esophagus. Swallowing helps guide the tube down into the esophagus instead of the trachea.

Choice A rationale

Auscultating lung sounds is the priority when monitoring for adverse effects of administering IV fluids. Fluid overload can lead to pulmonary edema, which would be detected by abnormal lung sounds such as crackles.

Choice B rationale

While measuring urine output is important to assess kidney function and fluid balance, it is not the priority in this case.

Choice C rationale

Monitoring blood pressure readings is important when administering IV fluids, but it is not the priority in this case.

Choice D rationale

Monitoring electrolyte levels is important when administering IV fluids, but it is not the priority in this case.