Question

a nurse is preparing to administer vasopressin 5 units im every 12 hr. available is vasopressin 20 units/ml. how many ml should the nurse administer per dose? (round the answer to the nearest hundredth. use a leading zero if it applies. do not use a trailing zero.)

Explanation:

Step1: Identify the formula for dosage calculation

The formula for calculating the volume of medication to administer is \( \text{Volume (mL)} = \frac{\text{Dose Required (units)}}{\text{Concentration (units/mL)}} \).

Step2: Substitute the given values

We know the dose required is 5 units and the concentration is 20 units/mL. Substituting these values into the formula, we get \( \text{Volume} = \frac{5}{20} \).

Step3: Perform the division

Calculating \( \frac{5}{20} = 0.25 \). But we need to round to the nearest hundredth and follow the formatting rules. However, \( 0.25 \) is already to the hundredth place, but the problem says "Do not use a trailing zero" – but \( 0.25 \) has no trailing zero after the hundredth place. Wait, actually, \( \frac{5}{20}=0.25 \), and when rounded to the nearest hundredth, it's 0.25. But let's check the calculation again. Wait, \( 5\div20 = 0.25 \), which is 0.25 mL. But let's confirm the formula. The formula for drug dosage is \( V=\frac{D}{H}\times Q \), where \( D \) is the desired dose, \( H \) is the dose on hand, and \( Q \) is the quantity on hand. Here, \( D = 5 \) units, \( H = 20 \) units/mL, and \( Q = 1 \) mL (since the concentration is 20 units per 1 mL). So \( V=\frac{5}{20}\times1 = 0.25 \) mL.

Answer:

0.25