1)The physician orders heparin, 7,500 units, to be administered subcutaneously every 6 hours.

The vial reads 10,000 units per milliliter. The nurse should anticipate giving how much heparin for
each dose?
Rationale: The nurse solves the problem as follows:
10,000 units/7,500 units = 1 ml/X
10,000X = 7,500
X = 7,500/10,000 or ml
2)The physician prescribes meperidine (Demerol), 75 mg I.M. every 4 hours as needed, to control
a client's postoperative pain. The package insert reads: "Meperidine, 100 mg/ml." How many
milliliters of meperidine should the client receive?
Rationale: To determine the number of milliliters the client should receive, the nurse uses the
fraction method in the following equation:
75 mg/X ml = 100 mg/1 ml
To solve for X, cross-multiply:
75 mg 1 ml = X ml 100 mg
75 = 100X
75/100 = X
0.75 ml (or ml) = X
3) The physician prescribes an infusion of 2,400 ml of I.V. fluid over 24 hours, with half this
amount to be infused over the first 10 hours. During the first 10 hours, the client should receive
how many milliliters of I.V. fluid per hour?
Rationale: First, the nurse determines how many milliliters (half of the total) to administer over
the first 10 hours: 2,400 ml 2 = 1,200 ml. Then the nurse determines how many of these
milliliters to deliver per hour: 1,200 ml 10 hours = 120 ml/hour.
4) The label of a drug package reads "meperidine hydrochloride (Demerol), 50 mg/ml." How
many milliliters would the nurse give a client for a 30-mg dose?
Rationale: A measure of 0.6 ml equals 30 mg when the ratio is 50 mg/ml. The ratio to determine
this answer is 30 mg : X ml :: 50 mg : 1 ml (answer is 0.6 ml)
5) The client is to receive an I.V. infusion of 3,000 ml of dextrose and normal saline solution over
24 hours. The nurse observes that the rate is 150 ml/hour. If the solution runs continuously at this
rate, the infusion will be completed in:
Rationale: The total amount to be given, 3,000 ml, divided by the hourly rate, 150 ml/hour,
equals the length of the infusion or, in this case, 20 hours.
6) The physician prescribes 250 mg of a drug. The drug vial reads 500 mg/ml. How much of the
drug should the nurse give?
Rationale: The nurse should give ml of the drug. The dosage is calculated as follows:
250 mg/X = 500 mg/1 ml
500X = 250
X = ml

7) The physician orders dextrose 5% in water, 1,000 ml to be infused over 8 hours. The I.V. tubing
delivers 15 drops/ml. The nurse should run the I.V. infusion at a rate of:
Rationale: Giving 1,000 ml over 8 hours is the same as giving 125 ml over 1 hour (60 minutes).
Find the number of milliliters per minute as follows:
125/60 minutes = X/1 minute
60X = 125 = 2.1 ml/minute
To find the number of drops per minute:
2.1 ml/X gtt = 1 ml/15 gtt
X = 32 gtt/minute, or 32 drops/minute
8) The physician orders codeine, grain every 4 hours, for a client experiencing pain. How many
milligrams of codeine should the nurse administer?
Rationale: The nurse should administer 30 mg of codeine. The dosage is calculated as follows:
1 gr/0.5 grain = 60 mg/X
X = 60 0.5 = 30 mg
9) The physician prescribes the following preoperative medications to be administered to a client
by the I.M. route: meperidine (Demerol), 50 mg; hydroxyzine pamoate (Vistaril), 25 mg; and
glycopyrrolate (Robinul), 0.3 mg. The medications are dispensed as follows: meperidine, 100
mg/ml; hydroxyzine pamoate, 100 mg/2 ml; and glycopyrrolate, 0.2 mg/ml. How many milliliters in
total should the nurse administer?
Rationale: Using the proportion method, the nurse solves for X in the following equations and
then adds the total number of milliliters together, as shown:
1 ml/100 mg = X ml/50 mg
X = 0.5 ml of meperidine
2 ml/100 mg = X ml/25 mg
X = 0.5 ml of hydroxyzine pamoate
1 ml/0.2 mg = X ml/0.3 mg
X = 1.5 ml of glycopyrrolate
0.5 ml + 0.5 ml + 1.5 ml = 2.5 ml of all preoperative medications
10) The physician prescribes cefoxitin (Mefoxin), 1 g in 100 ml of 5% dextrose in water, to be
administered I.V. The nurse determines that the recommended infusion time is 15 to 30 minutes.
The available infusion set has a calibration of 10 drops/ml. To infuse cefoxitin over 30 minutes,
which drip rate should the nurse use?
Rationale: To calculate an I.V. flow rate, the nurse multiplies the number of milliliters to be
infused (100 in this case) by the drop factor (10 drops/ml), and then divides by the number of
minutes over which the solution is to be infused 30 minutes. (100 10) 30 = 33 drops/minute
11) For a client with an acute pulmonary embolism, the physician prescribes heparin (Liquaemin),
25,000 U in 500 ml of dextrose 5% in water (D 5W) at 1,100 U/hour. The nurse should administer
how many milliliters per hour?
Rationale: First, determine the number of units per milliliter: 25,000 U of heparin divided by 50
U/ml equals 500 ml of fluid. Because each milliliter of D5W contains 50 U of heparin and the nurse
must deliver 1,100 U/hour, perform this calculation to determine the milliliters per hour of I.V.
solution flow: 1,100 U/hour 50 U/ml = 22 ml/hour.

12) Two days after a client undergoes repair of a ruptured cerebral aneurysm, the physician
prescribes mannitol (Osmitrol), 1.5 mg/kg to be infused over 60 minutes. The client weighs 175
lb. The nurse should administer how many milligrams of mannitol?
Rationale: To determine the number of milligrams to administer, the nurse first must convert the
client's weight from pounds to kilograms, using the following conversion factor:
2.2 lb = 1 kg
2.2 lb/175 lb = 1 kg/X kg
2.2 X kg = 175 lb
X = 79.5 (rounded to 80)
Then, the nurse calculates the dosage by multiplying the client's weight times the desired dose:
80 kg 1.5 mg/kg = 120 mg
13) The physician prescribes meperidine (Demerol), 30 mg I.M., as preoperative medication for a
school-age child who weighs 66 lb (30 kg). The meperidine is supplied as 50 mg/ml. How much
meperidine should the nurse administer?
Rationale: By using the fraction method and cross-multiplying to solve for X, the nurse can
determine that 0.6 ml should be administered:
X ml/30 mg = 1 ml/50 mg
X ml 50 mg = 30 mg 1 ml
X = 0.6 ml.
14) An 8-month-old infant is admitted with a febrile seizure. The infant weighs 17 lb (7.7 kg). The
physician orders ceftriaxone (Rocephin), 270 mg I.M. every 12 hours. (The safe dosage range is
50 to 75 mg/kg daily.) The pharmacy sends a vial containing 500 mg, to which the nurse adds 2
ml of preservative-free normal saline solution. The nurse should administer how many milliliters?
Rationale: Because the infant weighs 17 lb (7.7 kg), the safe dosage range is 385 to 578 mg
daily. The ordered dose, 540 mg daily, is safe. To calculate the amount to administer, the nurse
may use the following fraction method:
500 mg/2 ml = 270 mg/X ml
500X = 270 2
500X = 540
X = 540/500
X = 1.08 ml