A nurse is preparing to administer amoxicillin 2 gm/day PO divided into two doses.

The amount available is amoxicillin 500 mg tablets.

How many tablets should the nurse administer with each dose?

The question is about calculating the volume of phenytoin oral solution that the nurse should administer per dose. The client is prescribed 250 mg of phenytoin and the available solution has a concentration of 25 mg/5 mL.

Let’s calculate the volume step by step:

Step 1: Identify the prescribed dose and the concentration of the available medication. The prescribed dose is 250 mg and the concentration of the available medication is 25 mg/5 mL.

Step 2: Set up the calculation. We want to find out how many mL correspond to the prescribed dose. We can set up the calculation as follows: (Prescribed dose ÷ Concentration) × Volume.

Step 3: Substitute the known values into the calculation. This gives us: (250 mg ÷ 25 mg/5 mL).

Step 4: Perform the division operation first due to the order of operations (BIDMAS/BODMAS). This gives us: (250 mg ÷ 5 mg/mL).

Step 5: Perform the final calculation. This gives us: 50 mL.

So, the nurse should administer 50 mL of the phenytoin oral solution per dose.

Please note that this calculation assumes that the prescribed dose (250 mg) is to be administered in one go. If the dose is to be split over the day, the volume to be administered would change accordingly.

Choice A rationale:

This choice is incorrect. While it’s true that antiviral drugs can be effective in treating the flu, they’re most effective when started within 48 hours of symptom onset. Starting treatment after 4 days may not provide the same benefits.

Choice B rationale:

This choice is incorrect. While a blood test can confirm the presence of the flu virus, it’s not typically necessary to diagnose the flu. Diagnosis is usually based on symptoms and the fact that the flu is widespread in the community.

Choice C rationale:

This choice is correct. Antiviral drugs are most effective when started within 2 days of symptom onset. After this time, the benefits of these drugs decrease. Therefore, starting treatment 4 days after symptoms begin may not significantly reduce the duration or severity of symptoms.

Choice D rationale:

This choice is incorrect. While it’s true that getting a flu vaccine is important, it’s not the best response in this situation. The flu vaccine won’t treat current illness. It’s designed to prevent future infections. In this case, the individual is already sick, so a booster vaccination wouldn’t be the most effective course of action.