The nurse is explaining to the parents of a school-age child with type 1 diabetes mellitus how the health care provider determines the daily insulin dose. The child is prescribed to receive 0.5 units/kg of body weight of intermediate-acting and short-acting insulin at the ratio of 2:1. Because the child weighs 66 lb, how many units of the short-acting insulin will the health care provider prescribe? (Enter numeric value only.)

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The nurse should first determine the patient's weight in kilograms by dividing 66 lb by
2.2 or 66 / 2.2 = 30 kg. Then the nurse should multiple the prescribed dose of insulin by the body weight or 0.5 × 30 = 15. Then the nurse will need to determine the amount of intermediate-acting and short-acting insulin according to the ratio of 2:1. If the patient is to receive two parts of intermediate-acting insulin to one part of short-acting insulin, the total volume of 15 units can be divided by 3. The patient should be prescribed to receive 10 units of intermediate-acting insulin and 5 units of short-acting insulin.

The Nurse Is Explaining to the Parents of a School-Age