Pediatric Nursing: cram pack

Formula sheets, the key method steps for every topic and 6 practice problems, with full solutions at the back.

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1Formulas and methods

Pediatric nursing

Method

  1. Note the child’s age first: it sets the normal vital signs, the milestones and the right pain scale.
  2. Assess airway, breathing and circulation, remembering that children compensate and then deteriorate fast.
  3. Match the action to the development stage and involve the family.
  4. Check that the answer is safe for a child: weight-based, no aspirin in viral illness, no codeine under 12.

Pediatric & critical-care dosing

Daily dose
mg/day = mg/kg/day × weight (kg)
Doses per day
number = 24 h / dosing interval (h)
Pounds to kilograms
kg = lb / 2.2
Infusion concentration
units/mL = units in bag / bag volume
Pump rate
mL/h = dose per hour / concentration
Titrated drip
mL/h = mcg/kg/min × kg × 60 / (mcg/mL)
Dose from pump rate
mcg/kg/min = mL/h × (mcg/mL) / (60 × kg)
Units
1 mg = 1000 mcg

IV fluids & fluid balance

Holliday–Segar per hour
4 mL/kg (first 10 kg) + 2 mL/kg (next 10 kg) + 1 mL/kg (each kg above 20)
Holliday–Segar per day
100 / 50 / 20 mL/kg for the same bands
Fluid balance
intake − output
Ice chips
count as half their volume
Urine output
mL/kg/h = mL / (kg × h)
Infusion time
time (h) = volume left (mL) / rate (mL/h)
Volume infused
mL = rate × time

2Practice problems

1.Pediatric nursingMedium

A child is sent home after a minor head injury. Which sign should parents report straight away?

  1. ARepeated vomiting
  2. BA small bump on the forehead
  3. CWanting a nap at the usual time
  4. DMild soreness at the site
2.Pediatric nursingHard

The 7-year-old brother of a child with cancer has started misbehaving at school. What is the most likely explanation?

  1. AHe may feel worried, jealous or left out and needs attention and information
  2. BIt is unrelated to the illness and is normal for his age
  3. CHe is copying behaviour from other children in his class
  4. DHe has developed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and needs medicine
3.Pediatric & critical-care dosingMedium
25 000 units500 mLheparin? mL/h70 kg12 units/kg/h

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A bag contains 25 000 units of heparin in 500 mL. The order is 12 units/kg/h for a patient who weighs 70 kg. At what rate R do you set the pump, in mL/h? Round to one decimal place.

25 000 units/500 mL12 units/kg/h70 kg
R = mL/h
4.Pediatric & critical-care dosingHard
500 mg250 mLdobutamine? mL/h93 kg10 mcg/kg/min

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A bag contains dobutamine 500 mg in 250 mL. The order is 10 mcg/kg/min for a patient who weighs 93 kg. At what rate R do you set the pump, in mL/h? Round to one decimal place.

500 mg/250 mL10 mcg/kg/min93 kg
R = mL/h
5.IV fluids & fluid balanceMedium
IntakeOutput12-hour shiftsoup180 mLtea200 mLmilk200 mLIV infusion100 mL/h × 12 hIV antibiotic1 × 50 mLurine400 mLurine200 mLurine225 mLurine300 mLwound drain140 mLvomit150 mL

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). The record shows a patient's intake and output for one 12-hour shift. The IV infusion ran at the rate shown for the whole shift. Find the total intake I in mL.

soup: 180 mLtea: 200 mLmilk: 200 mLIV infusion: 100 mL/h × 12 hIV antibiotic: 1 × 50 mL
I = mL
6.IV fluids & fluid balanceHard
1000 mL50 mL/hstart 06:4511:45: ? mL

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A 1000 mL bag was started at 06:45 and runs by pump at 50 mL/h. How many mL V are left in the bag at 11:45?

1000 mL50 mL/h06:45 → 11:45
V = mL

3Solutions

1.Pediatric nursing

Answer: A · Repeated vomiting

Why this is the answer

Parents should seek urgent help for repeated vomiting, increasing drowsiness or difficulty waking, worsening headache, confusion, seizures, unequal pupils or weakness. A small bump and mild local pain are common.

Answer

A · Repeated vomiting
2.Pediatric nursing

Answer: A · He may feel worried, jealous or left out and needs attention and information

Why this is the answer

Siblings of seriously ill children often feel neglected, anxious, guilty or jealous and may show this through behaviour changes. Family-centred care includes giving siblings age-appropriate information, involvement and time with parents.

Answer

A · He may feel worried, jealous or left out and needs attention and information
3.Pediatric & critical-care dosing

Answer: R = 16.8 mL/h

Heparin and insulin infusions: concentration = units in the bag/bag volume (units/mL). Pump rate (mL/h) = units per hour/concentration, and units per hour = mL/h × concentration. For a weight-based order, units/h = units/kg/h × weight first. A bolus volume = units needed/vial strength. The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.

Units per hour

12·70 = 840 units/h

Concentration

25 000/500 = 50 units/mL

Pump rate

R = 840/50 = 16.8 mL/h

Answer

R = 16.8 mL/h
4.Pediatric & critical-care dosing

Answer: R = 27.9 mL/h

Titrated drips: first find the concentration in mcg/mL (mg × 1000/mL). For a weight-based order, mcg/min = mcg/kg/min × weight. Then mL/h = mcg/min × 60/concentration. Working backwards, mcg/kg/min = mL/h × concentration/(60 × weight). The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.

Concentration

500 mg = 500 000 mcg
500 000/250 = 2000 mcg/mL

Dose per minute and per hour

10·93 = 930 mcg/min
930·60 = 55800 mcg/h

Pump rate

R = 55800/2000 = 27.9 mL/h

Answer

R = 27.9 mL/h
5.IV fluids & fluid balance

Answer: I = 1830 mL

Intake and output: intake counts everything that goes in (oral fluids, IV infusions, IV medications and flushes, tube feeds); ice chips count as half their volume. Output counts urine, drains, vomit and other losses. Balance = total intake − total output; a negative balance is a net loss. The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.

Add the intake

oral: 180 + 200 + 200 = 580 mL
IV infusion: 100·12 = 1200 mL
IV antibiotic: 1·50 = 50 mL
I = 1830 mL

Answer

I = 1830 mL
6.IV fluids & fluid balance

Answer: V = 750 mL

Infusion time: time (h) = volume to infuse (mL)/rate (mL/h); use the volume still left in the bag, not the bag size. Volume infused = rate × time. Convert decimal hours to hours and minutes with the fraction × 60 (0.5 h = 30 min, not 50 min). The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.

Elapsed time

06:45 → 11:45 = 5 h

Volume infused

50·5 = 250 mL

Volume left

V = 1000 − 250 = 750 mL

Answer

V = 750 mL

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