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.)

The healthcare provider has prescribed 4 mg/minute of lidocaine. The IV bag contains 1 gram (or 1000 mg) in 500 mL. Therefore, the concentration of the medication is: 1000mg / 500mL ​= 2mg/mL So, to deliver 4 mg of lidocaine per minute, the volume to be infused per minute is: 4mg / 2mg/mL ​= 2mL/minute Since there are 60 minutes in an hour, the infusion pump should be set to deliver: 2mL/minute × 60minutes/hour = 120mL/hour So, the nurse should program the infusion pump to deliver 120 mL/hour.