1. Intake and Output Charts
Unit 36
Intake and Output Charts

2. Basic Principles for Completing Intake and Output Charts
Intake and output (I & O) charts are used to record all fluids a person takes in and eliminates during a certain period of time, usually 24 hours.
Intake refers to all fluids taken by the patient.
Output refers to all fluids eliminated by the patient.

3. Basic Principles for Completing Intake and Output Charts
Fluids for I & O charts are recorded as metric measurements, usually in milliliters (mL).
Some facilities use cubic centimeters (cc). Because 1 mL equals 1 cc, the measurements are identical.
Most agencies use standard measurements to record amounts.

4. Basic Principles for Completing Intake and Output Charts
Most charts contain 1-hour time periods to record information.
Every 8 hours, a total is calculated for each column.
At the end of the 24-hour period, the three 8-hour totals are added together to obtain the 24-hour total for each column.

5. Basic Principles for Completing Intake and Output Charts
Example Intake and Output (I & O) Chart.

6. Intake and Output Charts
Example: Using the example I & O chart on the previous slide, what is the patient’s 8-hour oral intake from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.?
Check the 8-hour total after 3 p.m under Oral.
The patient’s 8-hour oral intake is 820 mL.

7. Practical Problem A patient had urine output as follows:
9 am = 400 mL 1 pm = 250 mL
5 pm = 375 mL 9 pm = 550 mL
1 am = 400 mL 5 am = 200 mL
What was the total urine output for this 24-hour period?

8. Practical Problem
Add:
The patient’s 24-hour urine output is 2,175 mL.