A nurse is preparing to administer gentamicin 2 mg/kg IM to a school-age child who weighs 55 lb. Available gentamicin injection 40 is mg/mL. How many mL should the nurse administer? (Round the answer to the nearest tenth. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)

Step-by-step calculation: The child's weight is 55 lb. The medication dosage is 2 mg/kg. The available medication concentration is 40 mg/mL. Calculating the total dose in mg: Convert the child's weight to kg: 55 lb ÷ 2.2 lb/kg = 25 kg Calculate the total dose: 25 kg × 2 mg/kg = 50 mg Calculating the volume to administer: Use the concentration of the medication: 50 mg ÷ 40 mg/mL = 1.25 mL Rounding the answer: 1.25 rounds to 1.3 mL