College

On the second day of hospitalization, Mrs. Turner's orders call for 500 mg of azithromycin to be delivered in a 250 mL IV solution over 3 hours. The dose will be delivered using IV tubing with a drop factor of 10 (10 gtt = 1 mL).

What is the appropriate rate of flow for the IV in drops per minute?

Answer :

Final answer:

The nurse should set the IV drip at approximately 14 drops per minute to administer 500 mg of azithromycin over 3 hours using a drip factor of 10 gtt/mL.

Explanation:

To calculate the appropriate rate of flow for Mrs. Turner's IV in drops per minute, we can use the following formula:

Total Volume (mL) x Drop Factor (gtt/mL) / Time (minutes) = Flow Rate (gtt/min).

The total volume of the IV solution is 250 mL, the drop factor is 10 gtt/mL, and the time over which the IV should be administered is 3 hours (180 minutes).

Using this formula: 250 mL x 10 gtt/mL / 180 minutes = 13.89 gtt/min.

The nurse should set the IV drip to approximately 14 drops per minute to deliver the 500 mg of azithromycin as prescribed.