Magnesium sulfate

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

My current job says we have to have LR as a main line.   They use anesthesia tubing, connected directly to IV site hanging by gravity and clamped off.   Then hang another LR infusing on pump at 75 ml/hr and magnesium on second chamber infusing at 50 ml/hr.   Per management, this is awhonn standard to have a mainline of LR.   I've never worked anywhere else that we had to have a bag of LR connected to infuse by gravity but clamped off.   Is this really an awhonn standard?   I've always just considered my LR infusing on a pump to be my primary line.   Is mainline and primary line two different things?   How do you hang magnesium at your hospital?   

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

The LR on the pump IS the main line. So you have 2 bags of LR hanging, one of which is not actually infusing? What is its purpose? Management is correct that you should have a main line/primary line of LR, but that's what the LR at 75 is.

One bag of LR on a pump. One bag of MgSO4 on a pump. Done. 

And then, more likely than not, one bag of Pit on a pump as well.

3 Votes
Specializes in Nursing Student.

Is it an emergency backup in case you need to bolus very quickly? 

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
On 2/1/2022 at 6:32 AM, brume said:

Is it an emergency backup in case you need to bolus very quickly? 

The primary line on the pump would serve that purpose.

Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

We always ran it the way Klone said, LR on one pump, MGS04 on the other. And if needed, pitocin on a 3rd pump as well.

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