The healthcare provider (HCP) prescribes lidocaine 4 mg/minute IV for a client experiencing premature ventricular contractions. The IV bag contains "Lidocaine 1 gram in dextrose 5% in water 500 mL. How many mL/hr should the nurse program the infusion pump to deliver? (Enter numerical value only.)

Here's how to calculate the rate (mL/hour) for the infusion pump to deliver lidocaine 4 mg/minute: 1. Lidocaine concentration: The medication bag contains 1 gram of lidocaine in 500 mL of dextrose 5% in water. Convert grams to milligrams: 1 gram = 1000 milligrams Lidocaine concentration (mg/mL) = Total lidocaine (mg) / Volume (mL) Lidocaine concentration (mg/mL) = 1000 mg / 500 mL Lidocaine concentration (mg/mL) = 2 mg/mL (round to nearest whole number) 2. Prescribed lidocaine dose: 4 mg/minute (given) 3. We need to find the volume delivered per hour (mL/hour) to achieve the prescribed lidocaine dose (4 mg/minute) considering the concentration (2 mg/mL) in the bag. Infusion rate (mL/hour) = Dose (mg/minute) x Minutes per hour / Concentration (mg/mL) However, there's a mismatch in units between dose (mg/minute) and concentration (mg/mL). To address this, we can convert the infusion duration (minutes) to hours to match the concentration units (mg/mL). Conversion factor: 60 minutes/hour Infusion rate (mL/hour) = Dose (mg/minute) x (60 minutes/hour) / Concentration (mg/mL) Infusion rate (mL/hour) = 4 mg/minute * 60 minutes/hour / 2 mg/mL Infusion rate (mL/hour) = 120 mL/hour (round to nearest whole number) Therefore, the nurse should program the infusion pump to deliver approximately 120 mL/hour.