A nurse is preparing to administer quinine 25 mg/kg/day PO divided in equal doses every 8 hr to a school-age child who weighs 86 lb. Available is quinine 325 mg tablets. How many tablets should the nurse administer per dose? (Round the answer to the nearest whole number. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)

Step-by-Step Solution: Convert the child's weight from pounds to kilograms. 1 pound is =0.453592 kilograms. 86 pounds = 86 x 0.453592 = 38.999952 kilograms. Calculate the total daily dose of quinine. The prescribed dose is 25 mg/kg/day. The child weighs 38.999952 kg. The total daily dose = 25 mg/kg/day x 38.999952 kg = 974.9988 mg/day. Determine the dose per administration. The total daily dose is divided into three equal doses (every 8 hours). The dose per administration = 974.9988 mg/day / 3 = 324.9996 mg per dose. Calculate the number of tablets to administer per dose. Each tablet contains 325 mg of quinine. To find the number of tablets, divide the dose per administration by the amount of quinine per tablet: Number of tablets = 324.9996 mg / 325 mg/tablet = 0.999999 tablets Round the answer to the nearest whole number: 1 tablet.