Who draws the blood at your hospital?

Jess, at my facility there are a number of staff who draw blood. These people include phlebotomists (the heart and soul of morning lab draws), nurses (occasionally) and technicians (EMTs and paramedics). We get a printed "flimsy" or piece of paper that tells us how much we need and what to put it in (lytes in a sodium heparin green top) and we go from there. ID of patients using 2 sources. Get the blood either from the heel or vein, whatever is called for, label correctly, time date and username on label, and it's sent to lab for analysis.

in italy blood drawing is completely left to nurses. it is a specific action permitted in our "professional profile" and you learn it during training,before graduate. also the IV infusions are a nurse speciality....with a ministerial law executive from december 2006 (but i can be wrong,don't remember exactly) nurses can also perform arterial drawing. sorry for my english....

JessTexan - Unfortunately your hospital is changng with the times. Most hospitals have begun using a widespread population of healthcare personnel to collect blood. It's cheaper in the long run to spread a task over a workforce that is also doing other tasks. Phlebotomists are being replaced in hospitals. Our profession as nurses embraced the idea because it made sense to take further advantage of skills. However, what has happened now is that hospital administrators have realized that if nurses can do it so can lesser paid personnel. You are right to be concerned. Before long the nurses tech with a minimal training will be drawing blood in your hospital. In today's hospital patient care is measured in dollars and cents$$.

We draw our own labs in our ICU.

Here in the Philippines (for government-owned hospitals) all of the blood extractions (arterial or venous) and IV insertions are the responsibility of nurses regardless of unit or ward. I think this helps with the upgrading of your skill as a healthcare professional. When we say complete care, we mean "complete care"

Here in TX our CNAs draw the blood usually but if they are busy and it needs to be done then it falls back on us....its kind of a team effort....as someone said before this is showing to be more cost effecetive for hospitals and of course anything to save a buck!!!