Injections practice?

[NurseStudentHusband]

Hi,

my wife is a nursing student and wants to use me to practice injections for some exam. I told her NO WAY! I don't mind the cooking, cleaning, laundry and other stuff but she can't use me as a pin cushion. She needs to practice injections with subcutaneous and intramuscular, which a friend of mine says hurts. She claims it won't hurt that much but she can forget it. Plus she needs to inject it into my stomach! Has she lost her mind?

Anyway is there something else she can pratice on? She says they use pillows at school then during the exam they inject the professor (I take you have to be insane to be nursing profeesor). Can't she practice on herself? How about she uses the dog? Or some sort of dead animal? I'll gladly run over the neighbors cat or a squirrel or something. Or am I being a baby like she says? Can't you kill somebody if you screw it up? Why can't she use the million dollar robo paient they just bought, IStan? I thought that was the whole point of having it.

Anyway thanks. She is doing much better since she took some of your advice (studying in a group has helped a lot), straight A's. But she is really hard worker, so no surprise.

[jmgrn65, RN]

They can use oranges, and yes she should be able to use the manniquen at school. She not be practicing on you. She will get her chance to inject on a person soon enough. The instructor is apparently a sadist or masochist whichever if she is letting students practice on her.

I never asked anyone including my husband if i could practice on them, its crazy.

Probably wouldn't kill you, but can hit a nerve and do damage or a vein. Good Luck

[jschut, BSN, RN]

There are manniquens at schools to use....

But I had to giggle because my husband let me use him to practice "almost" everything on while I was in school.... he was such a good sport! LOL!

I didn't do any invasive procedures on him though!

Hang in there... you're being a good support to her. :)

[SolaireSolstice, BSN, RN]

I "practiced" on my husband, but never actually stuck him with anything (though the foley was tempting). I just walked through the routine, verbalizing the method and location, kept the needle capped (and the foley wrapped). Grossed him out anyway. He HATES needles. Can't wait for NG tube placement practice.

If your wife feels she really needs to practice on a human to get the sites and procedure down correctly, she can keep the needles capped if you're willing. Or use a pen. Same for IV placement. Though the mannequins are available, real peoples arms/veins are very different. I wrap a tourniquet around anything that will hold still long enough, but would never stick a needle in except in clinicals. I wouldn't let someone "practice" on me at home, but I've done it at clinical/lab where there is an instructor standing by to help.

Just offering an alternative so you can still feel supportive!

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

she can use an orange like we all did. a hot dog or some kind of firm sausage works well also. she is not learning her lessons and there is something wrong with her thinking processes if she is forgetting that injecting someone breaks the skin surface disrupting the person's protection against microbes and placing them at risk for infection each time of injection no matter how cautious she is. how does she feel about someone else injecting her? we were never allowed to inject another person, student or patient, unsupervised, until after we had graduated and gotten our license because it was illegal. even medical assistants can only inject people when a doctor is present in the office where they work under his supervision. i see you finally have your limits. i hope your comment about running over the neighbor's cat or a squirrel was meant to be humorous because if serious would make your thinking as questionable as your wife's. if your wife makes it through school i can't wait to hear the next installment in this saga. what are you going to do if she comes home with an n/g tube or foley catheter and wants to ram these into you for practice? i'd threaten to have her arrested for assault.

[truern]

we were never allowed to inject another person, student or patient, unsupervised, until after we had graduated and gotten our license because it was illegal.

daytonite, i doubt it's "illegal" because many nursing schools do indeed have students give injections unsupervised once they've proved proficiency. after i'd been observed giving sqs and ims under my instructor's supervision, and with her approval and knowledge, i was allowed to give them without her being present.

op, may i suggest that your wife practice on herself if she wants to practice giving injections with minimal pain.....i wouldn't volunteer if i were you, either

[That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

I dont see the harm in volunteering. It isnt that painful, especially when only using a NS solution. Heck I volunteered for IV practice because I have good veins. And I was the pin cushion for injection practice.

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

I dont see the harm in volunteering. It isnt that painful, especially when only using a NS solution. Heck I volunteered for IV practice because I have good veins. And I was the pin cushion for injection practice.

Review the principles of asepsis. That is why.

[NamasteNurse, BSN, RN]

One word, ok maybe more..unsafe, unnecessary, is too painful, asepsis, I could think of more, but wow, that's not good nursing practice at all.

[Am_Byth]

In my school we practice sub q shots on each other. We also do an IV lab where we get one shot to start an IV on another student.

My friend has let me use her as a "pin cushion". And the other day I started 2 IVs on my brother.

[RedCell]

Tell her to practice on patients...that is what they are there for.

[Nursey103, ADN, RN]

What is the big deal?!? It's not that painful and if you use alcohol and proper technique...I don't see the harm in it!! I've practiced more on my boyfriend/family!!