Q: We work in a single physician office based infusion clinic and we infuse drugs for rheumatoid arthritis by gravity, not by pump, because pumps are expensive. Me and the other nurse think dial-a flow tubing will be useful especially on a busy infusion day. What do you think? A: Dial-a-flo devices are designed to…
Nearly 53 million outpatient procedures are performed annually in the United States. While most of these procedures occur in hospital outpatient departments, a growing number are being done in nonhospital-based facilities such as ambulatory surgery centers and physician offices. One of these procedures include infusion therapy, the administration of fluids and medications via the venous…
This is an updated version of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) hazardous drugs list. So what’s new in this current update? The text for the update to the 2014 list was updated and expanded to reflect the complexity of safe handling issues that have arisen over the past few years. This…
If you are a registered nurse currently working with/delegating/supervising “unlicensed healthcare personnel” (UHCP) also known as “unlicensed assistive personnel” (UAP), would you be interested in answering a short survey related to the use of unlicensed healthcare personnel in the provision of infusion therapy? The survey is open to US registered nurses from all healthcare settings who work…
I know, this may come as a surprise to all of you, but the truth is, I have seen many nurses (even those highly trained and specialized) both in hospitals and outpatient settings, use the same alcohol swab over and over. Imagine this scenario where a nurse is ready to withdraw medication from several vials.…
Don’t you just hate it when you stick a perfectly good vein and end up going through the vein? Can you tell when the tip of the needle and the tip of the catheter have entered the vein to know when to advance the catheter into the vein? As I always do, here’s my disclaimer…
In June of 2013, I was honored to chair a national task force for the Infusion Nurses Society’s (INS) project on Short Peripheral Catheter Safety (SPC). Along with five other colleagues, we embarked on a task to identify the safety and practice issues and look at ways to promote safety in the insertion and management…
Q: Do you have any tips on how to improve my IV insertion skills? A: This is one of the FAQ and often comes from new blog readers. I have blogged about this many times before but I thought I’d post it again. To some of my long time readers, this may not be new…
Q: How can I be IV certified? If I attend an IV program, will I be IV certified? A: If I get a dollar every time I get asked this question, I would be a very rich infusion nurse!! But seriously, the confusion about IV certification have been in existence for as long as I…
Q: I know not to but reality is, many nurses use the AC (antecubital fossa) to start and dwell a peripheral IV. It is the easiest place to find a vein so why not use it? A: The antecubital fossa is in front of the elbow, bounded laterally and medially by the humeral origins of…
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