A nurse is preparing to administer nitroglycerin by continuous IV infusion at 15 mcg/min to treat a client's angina. Available is nitroglycerin 50 mg in dextrose 5% in water 250 mL. The nurse should set the IV pump to deliver how many mL/hr? (Round the answer to the nearest whole number. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)

Convert the desired dose from micrograms per minute (mcg/min) to milligrams per hour (mg/hr). 1 mg = 1000 mcg 1 hr = 60 min Desired dose in mg/hr = (15 mcg/min / 1000 mcg/mg) × 60 min/hr = 0.015 mg/min × 60 min/hr = 0.9 mg/hr. Determine the concentration of the available nitroglycerin solution in milligrams per milliliter (mg/mL). Available concentration = Total medication (mg) / Total volume (mL) = 50 mg / 250 mL = 0.2 mg/mL. Calculate the IV pump rate in milliliters per hour (mL/hr). IV pump rate (mL/hr) = Desired dose (mg/hr) / Available concentration (mg/mL) = 0.9 mg/hr / 0.2 mg/mL = 4.5 mL/hr. Round the answer to the nearest whole number. = 5 mL/hr.