flushing the iv

[lpnstudentin2010, LPN]

I am not a nurse...yet...I hope in a couple of years (I am a senior in highschool) to go to nursing school. I was recently in the hospital and I was wondering, why are iv's flushed? I was on a pump and when I had to go to the bathroom my nurse had to come disconect the iv, flush the part that was connected to my hand. When I got back to bed she wiped the little connecter thingy with an alchahol prep swab, flushed the iv part that was connected to my hand again, and connected it. Why is this?

[ClaireMacl]

Hiya,

It's a good question to ask! Basically, we generally do it because when you put an IV line in it can coagulate at the end of the cannula and stop it from running. Essentially, its like a thick bit of blood, when we flush it with normal saline, it free's it up and allows the IV fluids to go in freely.

[lpnstudentin2010, LPN]

thanks for the info.