Question

The health care provider has ordered a change of prescription from rapid-acting insulin to an intermediate-acting type. which adverse effect must the nurse closely monitor for in the client?

Answer 1

You may be talking about change from rapid-acting insulin to intermediate-acting insulin. Rapid acting insulin, as it implies, has onset of 10 to 30 minutes and peaks in 3 hours. Meanwhile, the intermediate-acting insulin takes 1 hour and 30 minutes to 4 hours to take effect, and it peaks in 4 to 12 hours. If changing from rapid-acting to intermediate-acting, there is a big space where there might be no insulin in the body to control blood sugar levels. As a nurse, you should carefully monitor blood glucose levels every 30 minutes and watch out for symptoms of hypeglycemia.