what are common times to run IV's in ?

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I am a new nurse working in a CCU/CVICU area and was wondering if some of you seasoned nurses can give me some input about how long certain IV's should go in such as calcium, potassium, mag, etc. I know a lot of this comes along with experience but these are the types of things i sit around and think about :confused:

Thanks, any input is appreciated!

zosyn has to deal with the concentration in the blood known as the minimum inhibitory concentration (mic). by increasing the length of the infusion the patients mic will remain at a level that will kill the bacteria for a longer period. also, the patient can receive less doses, q8hrs vs. q6hrs. patients with a creatinine clearance less than 20 or are hd/crrt will still get the 30 min dose. they don't clear the dose therefore their mic remains elevated.

nick

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At my hospital:

Mag - depending on how low their level is, we can run 1-2g over an hour. Faster if they're having TDP, of course.

K - if they've got a PIV, 10 mEq/hr max, 20 mEq if they've got a central line.

Ca - 1g in 15 min. Usually draw it up in a 20 ml syringe and run it as a piggyback.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
I am a new nurse working in a CCU/CVICU area and was wondering if some of you seasoned nurses can give me some input about how long certain IV's should go in such as calcium, potassium, mag, etc. I know a lot of this comes along with experience but these are the types of things i sit around and think about :confused:

Thanks, any input is appreciated!

Sigh. Look. up. your. drug. info. Suppose you run something based on what an anonymous poster told you here, and it turned out to be wrong information. What are you going to say? "Well, someone on the internet said I could run the drug at this rate."

You don't know who is responding to you here. I've seen students and pre-nursing students give advice about practice. Follow the information from your P&P and the drug manufacturer.

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As for Zosyn, I have always given it over 30 minutes to an hour. Just a few days ago I hung a Zosyn IV infusion, among other things, and it ended up infusing in about 30 minutes.

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Specializes in ER, progressive care.

We have K (PO and IV) and Mg (IV) replacement protocols, as well as a Phos IV protocol. The amount given depends on what the electrolyte level is. For K, initial replacement isn't to be given until the K is below 3.5, then afterwards if it is

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Sigh. Look. up. your. drug. info. Suppose you run something based on what an anonymous poster told you here, and it turned out to be wrong information. What are you going to say? "Well, someone on the internet said I could run the drug at this rate."

You don't know who is responding to you here. I've seen students and pre-nursing students give advice about practice. Follow the information from your P&P and the drug manufacturer.

So true!! Don't be lazy.

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Specializes in cardiac ICU.

Our facility gives zosyn over 4 hrs in the ICU's only, it maximizes absorbtion and therefore increases exposure to therapeutic levels, we just started this a couple months ago and now merrem is going to have an extended infusion time as well.

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Well, OP, you've gotten a variety of answers and it shows that it is dependent on your hospital's policy. And, if you don't know, ask pharmacy.

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