help with accuchecks

melcolbstorm · Mar 14, 2014

hmmmmm casi, thank you for the tip!!!That will DEFINATELY help!!

Paws2people · Mar 14, 2014

Whether or not you clean with alcohol depends on your machine. Make sure that you understand the machine your hospital uses. Alcohol wipes can cause inaccurate results on the machines at my facility, so we clean with soap and water before taking our reading.
Also, you don't want to vigorously 'milk' the finger, as it can cause hemolysis or increase the tissue fluid in the result, which can affect the result. Usually with light pressure around the area you can get enough for a blood sample. I find that having the hand low for a minute or two helps get a sample as you're encouraging blood flow to it.
Soap and water? Interesting. We use alcohol as it does not effect our results. But this just goes to show the OP that they definitely need to know the do's and don'ts of their facility! And yes, by 'milk' I definitely don't mean vigorously :)
OP, ask your unit educator to teach you and demonstrate, and let you practice. Always follow your facility's procedure as it varies from place to place. I find if the pt's hands/fingers are cold, it's harder to get a sample. You may need to warm them first. After awhile you'll be a pro Good luck.

malestunurse · Mar 14, 2014

Whether or not you clean with alcohol depends on your machine. Make sure that you understand the machine your hospital uses. Alcohol wipes can cause inaccurate results on the machines at my facility, so we clean with soap and water before taking our reading.
Also, you don't want to vigorously 'milk' the finger, as it can cause hemolysis or increase the tissue fluid in the result, which can affect the result. Usually with light pressure around the area you can get enough for a blood sample. I find that having the hand low for a minute or two helps get a sample as you're encouraging blood flow to it.
Soap and water? Interesting. We use alcohol as it does not effect our results. But this just goes to show the OP that they definitely need to know the do's and don'ts of their facility! And yes, by 'milk' I definitely don't mean vigorously :)
OP, ask your unit educator to teach you and demonstrate, and let you practice. Always follow your facility's procedure as it varies from place to place. I find if the pt's hands/fingers are cold, it's harder to get a sample. You may need to warm them first. After awhile you'll be a pro Good luck.
The other reason you don't want to use alcohol wipes is that it will dry the skin out which can cause it to crack.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Mar 15, 2014

You have received enough comments on technique.

I want to share an event that I hope we all keep in mind.

I was coming on duty, no report, but ran to assist an off going nurse. The patient was diaphoretic and confused.

On duty nurse ran a glucometer check... it was WNL.

MY check was also WNL. The blood draw revealed a blood sugar of 34.

Moral of the story is..treat the patient.. not the machine.

Paws2people · Mar 15, 2014

You have received enough comments on technique.
I want to share an event that I hope we all keep in mind.
I was coming on duty, no report, but ran to assist an off going nurse. The patient was diaphoretic and confused.
On duty nurse ran a glucometer check... it was WNL.
MY check was also WNL. The blood draw revealed a blood sugar of 34.
Moral of the story is..treat the patient.. not the machine.

Exactly. And often when the patient says, "I just don't feel right. I think my sugar is high/low," they are usually correct. They know their body best. I never ignore a patient or co-worker's instinct :)

EaglesWings21, ASN, RN · Mar 16, 2014

https://www.accu-chek.com/index.html ... your welcomes :)

applesxoranges, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2014

Follow policy. We use alcohol at my facility. I forget the name of the glucometer. We use the side of the finger tip. Ask which finger the patient prefers if they can talk. Try to rotate fingers.