Blood, Electrolytes, and Intravenous Infusions
3-12
3-12. CALCULATING THE INTRAVENOUS DRIP RATE
In order to infuse a solution ordered by the physician, it is necessary to calculate the infusion rate. A drip rate calculation may be desired for maintenance of trauma patients that you may not be able to immediately evacuate. During the care under fire phase of tactical care the appropriate hypovolemic fluid protocols should be followed for the benefit of your patient and triage of your available supplies.
a. The physician who ordered the infusion for the patient will give you the following information:
b. From the infusion set, you will learn how many drops per ml the set is capable of providing. You must determine how many drops per minute are required in order to set this delivery rate on the infusion set. The formula for determining the drip rate is given below.
|
(1) |
The type or kind of fluid to be infused. |
|
(2) |
The amount of fluid to use. |
|
(3) |
The time period over which the total amount of fluid is to be infused. |
|
Flow rate in |
Volume (in ml) |
Drops per ml delivered |
||
|
drops per minute |
= |
to be infused |
X |
by the set you are using |
|
Infusion time in minutes |
||||
