Infusion set rate issue.....

Nursing Students Student Assist

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I FIGURED IT OUT, WOOPS (dont I feel foolish)

Okay I thought I knew infusion set rates but then I got this question thrown at me and I cant for the life of me figure out why Im not doing this right. I know Im making it more difficult than it really is.

If a patient is to receive 1000mL of IV solution over 8 hours and four hours after the infusion has started 620mL remain. With the infusion set delivering 15gtt/mL, in order to recieve the remaining fluid within the prescribed time period (8 hours) the set should deliver how many drops per minute.

remianing fliud=620mL

Remining time in minutes=240minutes

infusion set=15gtt/mL

amount to infuse in ml / time to infuse in minutes *drip rate (which is unknow isnt it although the tubing being used is 15gtt/mL) so.....

620mL / 240 x drip rate (unknown)=

I know the answer is 39 but all be damned if I can see how to get to that answer, please help this little nursling!!!!

nothing change really you just start problem over you now have to get rid of 620 ml in 4 hrs

volume= 620ml

gtts/ml= 15 drop factor

minutes= 240

volume 620 ml x 15 gtts/ml divide by 240 minutes= 38.75 gtts/min which is rounded to 39

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

if you do this problem by the factor label method (dimensional analysis) you set the problem up as a series of terms you multiply together in order to end up with a fraction for an answer that has the labels "gtts" in the numerator and "minute" in the denominator.

620 ml
/
240 minutes
(amount to give)
x
15 gtts
/
1 ml
(drip factor of iv tubing)
=
38.79 gtts/minute
(drip rate after doing the math and canceling out the label "ml" in numerator and denominator)
, or
39 gtts/minute
(drip rate, rounded off)

Thank you for the help!

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