Giving Blood products

It will vary by hospital, so your best bet would be look up the policy and procedures at your hospital for administration of blood products.

1--7 weeks of orientation is not enough for a new grad in an ICU

2--How fast depends on what's going on. Is it an old person? Are they a CHFer? Do they have LV or RV Failure? Are they hypotensive? Are they a trauma patient and exsanguinating? Most blood banks require that it be started within 30 minutes of getting the product and completed within 4 hours. Most hospitals run blood on a pump and most trauma centers run blood via gravity with a pressure bag and/or rapid infuser.

3--Look at the tubing. Typically PRBC tubing is changed every 2nd unit. Our FFP/Platelet/Cryo tubing is changed every 4th unit. It just depends on the brand of tubing. Ask your blood bank. They'll know best.

In my trauma patients, we chase PRBCs with a liter of NS. In the elderly, I flush it just enough to get all of the PRBCs out of the line.

As already stated, look up your hospital's specific policy. We change tubing after every 2 units of blood and every 3 of FFP/Platelets/etc. I rarely run a lot of NS after blood because the majority of my patients (MICU/CVICU with a lot of CHF'ers) are very easily volume-overloaded; I usually run at least enough to flush the line. When in doubt, I always ask advice from seasoned nurses as to whether I'm running enough or too-little fluids.

As I tell our new grad/preceptees to our MICU/SICU...I would be worried if you DIDN'T have lots of questions. Good luck and don't forget to have fun learning!