totally confused

[ljbutler]

We have checkoffs tommorrow and have this pacu scenerio.

Pain wakes up in pain. MD orderes 6.25mg of Demerol for pain.

Available in 25mg/mL.

Is this correct 6.25mg

______ X 1 mL = 0.25 mL (dose to give??)

25mg

Also, patient has heplock so would this be IVP......0.25 mL in how many seconds??? We were not given time.....

[EnviroVeg]

You can use the formula:

(Ordered/Have) * Volume_Per_Have = Liquid Required

Ordered: 6.26 mg

Have: 25mg

Volume_Per_have: 1mL

(6.25 mg / 25 mg) * 1 mL = 0.25 mL

Your answer is correct! Great job! =)

I suggest you take a look at the entire tutorial for dosage calculations at www.dosagehelp.com

There are also practice questions (with explanations for whatever you get wrong) that you may want to try.

[EnviroVeg]

We have checkoffs tommorrow and have this

Also, patient has heplock so would this be IVP......0.25 mL in how many seconds??? We were not given time.....

The question here is asking for you to determine how much liquid to give. It is not asking for a rate at which to administer it. It is possible for a question to ask first how much liquid to give and then to determine a rate at which to give it. This is definitely something you should be able to do, but not for this problem.

[APBT mom, LPN, RN]

You have it right but like the pp said don't worry about what route to give. You don't want to read to deep into the questions because it can cause you to get it wrong.

Although it could be an IV push or an IM injection depends on how the MD orders it.

[christiangirl]

i use dimensional analysis and it hasnt failed me yet

start with what you want to get

ml's/1 =ml/25mg * 6.25mg/1

the ml's go over one cause you arent looking for ml/min or gtt/min etc -- you are only looking for ml

cross cancel the mg's and all thats left is ml

divide and done

[onyx77]

I use the dimensional analysis for everything - it makes it so easy!

I think it is a good idea to know the medication you will be giving. Know what possibe routes it can given as your instructor may ask you these questions. You should also know what the med is doing and what the most common and severe side effects are, what you need to assess before and after administration. And of-course what you will need to tell the pt about this med. Look the med up and be prepared for all questions. I've never had a check-off that was a simple calculation. It is always better to be over prepared than under prepared. I lived by that all through nursing school and it never failed me. How can you go wrong if you cover all your bases? You can't!