The nurse assumes care of a patient who has been receiving intermittent enteral feedings of 240 mL of Osmolite every 4 hours for the past 48 hours.The patient is in bed with the head of the bed elevated 60 degrees.The enteral tubing is intact,and the enteral pump is infusing at 360 mL per hour.The nurse notes 60 mL of solution left in the bag.The tubing is not labeled.What will the nurse do?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

All enteral equipment should be labeled and changed every 24 hours.Since the tubing is not labeled,the nurse should change and label it as soon as the current infusion is complete.The infusion is set so that 240 mL will infuse over 45 minutes,which is appropriate,so the rate does not need to be increased.The head of the bed should be at least 30 degrees,so there is no need to lower the head of the bed.The nurse should check for residual just prior to administering the next infusion,but it is not indicated at this point.

The Nurse Assumes Care of a Patient Who Has Been