IV administration set drip rate Guide

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

Published

HI ,

I am wondering how I can find a solution for IV administration with the IV machine? As I am understanding about the formula but I found that when I had a training, my buddy nurse only set 4 hrs ( volume : 100 and rate 25 ML)?

In fact I followed the formula but it was not the right answer. Can anyone tell me what I have to calculate? or anyone has a format for the solution?

Here is the formula : drip rate= volume(ml) x drops per ml/ time ( minutes).

Specializes in None.

I would put this into the Nursing Assistance section. You will get a lot of replies there! Sorry I can't help.

Specializes in Cardiology and ER Nursing.

Pumps are ONLY in mL per hour and will only accept mL per hour. You don't even worry about drips, tubing conversion factors or any of that with pumps.

The formula for pumps is

Volume to be infused ÷ hours to infuse over

For your problem it would be 100mL ÷ 4 which gives you an hourly rate of 25mL.

If you have something like administer 100mL NS over 30 minutesor any situation where the time to infuse is LESS than 60 minutes you need to to convert the 100mL over 30 minutes into an hourly rate.

You use the formula 100 * 60 ÷ time in minutes to infuse over to do this.

For my example above you'd set it up 100mL * 60 ÷ 30 which would give you an hourly rate of 200mL.

The formula you gave is for gravity infusions.

Pumps = mL per hour

gravity(no pump) = drops per minute.

Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
+ Add a Comment