The physician orders a unit of packed red blood cells (PRBC) to infuse in 2 hours. The unit contains 250 mL. The blood tubing administration set has a drop factor of 10 gtt/mL. The flow rate for the infusion of packed red blood cell is gtt/min. (Round to the nearest drop)

A. The patient's color can indicate their oxygenation status. Cyanosis (bluish tint) may suggest hypoxia, which is critical to assess in an asthma patient.
B. Auscultation of lung sounds is essential in asthma assessment. The presence of wheezing, prolonged expiration, or decreased breath sounds can indicate airway obstruction and the severity of the asthma exacerbation.
C. Assessing heart tones can provide information about the cardiovascular response to respiratory distress. Increased heart rate may occur due to hypoxia or anxiety associated with asthma attacks.
D. Bowel sounds are not relevant in the assessment of asthma. While gastrointestinal symptoms may co- occur in some patients, they are not directly related to asthma's respiratory condition.
E. While peripheral pulses are important in general assessments, they do not provide specific information relevant to asthma management or respiratory status.
F. Monitoring respiratory rate and effort is crucial in assessing asthma. Increased respiratory rate and use of accessory muscles may indicate respiratory distress or an asthma exacerbation.
G. A pulse oximetry reading provides an objective measure of oxygen saturation. Low oxygen saturation levels indicate inadequate oxygenation, which is critical to monitor in asthma patients.
H. Measuring peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) helps assess the severity of airway obstruction and monitor asthma control. It can guide treatment decisions and determine if an asthma attack is occurring.

Convert infusion time to minutes:

2 hours * 60 minutes/hour = 120 minutes

Calculate the total number of drops:

250 mL * 10 gtt/mL = 2500 gtt

Calculate the flow rate:

Flow rate = Total number of drops / Infusion time Flow rate = 2500 gtt / 120 minutes

Flow rate ≈ 20.83 gtt/min

Rounding to the nearest drop, the flow rate for the infusion of packed red blood cells is 21 gtt/min.