nursing student and K+riders

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Ok can someone help me, i'm feeling real stupid about now, but what is the difference between K+riders and a piggyback (potassium of course lol )

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

To my knowledge there is no difference. It's just a idiomatic term. Potassium is never given as an IV bolus and always given as a "rider", or IV piggyback, on a pump. Infused too rapidly, it will put the patient in heart block and kill him/her.

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I think they are the same thing, My patient had a potassium piggy back ordered and the nurse was calling it a "rider", and that makes sense because you "ride" "piggyback" style.

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