I found a guinea pig!

natalie_ca

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I haven't inserted an IV in over 4 years. And I don't want my first "tries" to be on a patient after all this time.

I asked one of the medical residents if she felt brave enough to allow me to try IV insertion on her
She agreed, so long as I let her try one on me too!

I used to be deathly afraid of having a needle, but I got over that fear from when I was in the hospital and for some months afterward because I had to be poked so many times. Now I don't care.

Anyway, Trish hasn't had the chance to try an IV on a real person; she's only done them on practice dummies. I'm a large person, and my veins are very fine and quite deep, and not the easiest too get, even for the most experienced people. But I'm going to let her try anyway. I've got another resident thinking about it, so we may have an IV insertion party on the ward on Friday!


PS: I had a great time on the ward today. I wish it were longer than 4 hours
I helped with assessments and palpated the tummies of pregnant women to find the position of their babies, and did fetal heart rate ultra sound. It was so cool! On Friday I'm going to take 1 patient. I could take more but I still want to read some of the information binders and work on getting familiar with the changes in the forms and equipment. By the end of next week I'll be taking a 1/2 patient load and giving out medications.

After the IV insertion I need to brush up on catheter insertion and sterile technique. I tell you that while I remember the stuff, putting it into practice after all these years is so very different. I feel like I'm learning on the job because everything, and I mean everything has changed ... policies, procedures, equipment, supplies, paperwork.... I can't believe how many changes there have been. It's a bit daunting that I have to relearn all of that stuff again.
 

forensic

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Sounds like fun, actually!

The Phlebs in the clinic practice drawing each other all the time (often while drunk or hungover, good combo.
)

They're really good at it though.


And practice is good... when I went to the ER my IV bruised me from wrist to elbow. Ow!
 

carolpetunia

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Silly me -- I was imagining you found someone's furry little friend wandering the hallways in your building...
 

weldrwomn

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I have good veins but for some reason when I went to donate blood today, the guy could not find a vein. Nobody has ever had any problems finding veins in this arm, but he had that huge needle that they use and he spend a solid minute fishing around inside my arm to find this vein and when he couldn't find it, he called another lady over who after fishing around for a bit longer, found the vein. I am sore and I am betting on a good bruise.

It sounds like fun getting to work with pregnant ladies. I am glad that things are going well for you!
 
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natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by Forensic

Sounds like fun, actually!

The Phlebs in the clinic practice drawing each other all the time (often while drunk or hungover, good combo.
)

They're really good at it though.


And practice is good... when I went to the ER my IV bruised me from wrist to elbow. Ow!
When I graduated nursing I just couldn't insert an IV. I alway hit the vein, but couldn't advance the needle. It was 6 months after graduating that I finally got an IV inserted into someone without the verbal assistance of someone coaching me along.

I enjoyed inserting IV's but I was never really, really good at it. Then I took a chemotherapy course and was buddied with a nurse who worked on an IV team at our trauma hospital. She gave me some really excellent tips. By the time I finished that course I could practically insert an IV in the dark. After that I got 9 our of 10 IV's that I tried.

I've always been like that with things though. I find the harder something is for me to catch on to, the better at it I ultimately am once I do catch on.

I hope I haven't lost my touch. They changed the type of needles that we use though, so that will take getting used to.

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Silly me -- I was imagining you found someone's furry little friend wandering the hallways in your building...
After I typed the title, I realized that it could be mistaken for my having found a furry little critter. hehe
 
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natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by WELDRWOMN

It sounds like fun getting to work with pregnant ladies. I am glad that things are going well for you!
It's not too bad at all.

I've worked on that ward many times before I went off sick. I was a hospital float and got sent there quite a bit. But I always had the gynecology/oncology patients and not antepartum patients because I had never been officially orientated to their special needs care. Once I did get assigned 2 antepartum patients accidently, and I kept my mouth shut about it
because they tend to be the patients that require less nursing care than the other patients on the ward. Because they are young women, they are mostly independent and all that is really required is to do teaching, monitor baby's heart rate and do vital signs on the mom a few times a day, more if she has high blood pressure.

Today one of the girls had a really bad headache from her high blood pressure. She said it's been constant for about 6 months.

I don't get many headaches anymore, but I used to. I did research on accupressure and found that it really worked for my headaches. So because I didn't have any patient responsibility, I went in and spent about 15 minutes doing accupressure and massage on her head. She said that it helped. It didn't take away the headache completely but it dulled it and took the edge off of it.

She was having contractions today, so she should have her baby by Friday.
 

starryeyedtiger

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Linda I thought you ment you found a real guinea pig
I was going to ask you what you named it!


I'm glad you found someone to let you work on them!
 

mbjerkness

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Originally Posted by StarryEyedTiGeR

Linda I thought you ment you found a real guinea pig
I was going to ask you what you named it!


I'm glad you found someone to let you work on them!
I was thinking the same thing
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

I enjoyed inserting IV's but I was never really, really good at it. Then I took a chemotherapy course and was buddied with a nurse who worked on an IV team at our trauma hospital. She gave me some really excellent tips. By the time I finished that course I could practically insert an IV in the dark. After that I got 9 our of 10 IV's that I tried.
So what would you suggest people do with someone that's skinny, has easy to see but somewhat small veins that blow and get irritated easily? Maybe I can give the nurse (or nurses, as it usually takes two...) putting the IV in tomorrow a couple suggestions.
They always hate my veins.

Only one person has been able to get an IV in quickly without hunting for a vein or even having it hurt - he was an EP doc and probably use to getting them in people with odd veins and blood pressure since he gave the tilt table tests.
 

calico2222

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I'm glad you're having a good time at work! Yeah, I thought you meant a real guinee pig too, then I started reading the post and saw it was about the hospital...I was thinking "there was a guinee pig loose in the hospital???"


I took a phlebotomy course about 10 years ago and we would have to practice on each other. I HATED needles before that, now it's no big deal.

Good luck finding a staff guinee pig for catheter insertion though!
 

white cat lover

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Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Silly me -- I was imagining you found someone's furry little friend wandering the hallways in your building...
Me, too....wondered what the kits thought of their "new friend"!
 
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natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

So what would you suggest people do with someone that's skinny, has easy to see but somewhat small veins that blow and get irritated easily? Maybe I can give the nurse (or nurses, as it usually takes two...) putting the IV in tomorrow a couple suggestions.
They always hate my veins.

Only one person has been able to get an IV in quickly without hunting for a vein or even having it hurt - he was an EP doc and probably use to getting them in people with odd veins and blood pressure since he gave the tilt table tests.
Are you having an IV or blood drawn?

If your veins were really easy to see, and I was inserting an IV, I would do one of the following:

1. Use a blood pressure cuff instead of a tourniquet around your arm;

2. If they were really easy to see (IE: "popping" out above the level of the skin....rope veins), I wouldn't constrict your arm at all IE: no tourniquet or blood pressure cuff.

If they were extremely thin, I would use the finest needle. Here they are #24. In the event of drawing blood, I would use a very small "butterfly" needle.
 
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