IV starts

Definitely something that comes with practice. And it definitely depends on who the patient is... I am a new grad and just got my first opportunity to stick in my last semester. I managed to get it right away but I truly believe it was luck haha. All I did was find the vein and keep the needle at a good angle. Other than that, probably luck haha... Don't get discouraged. You won't perfect most of the nursing skills until you're a nurse and do them regularly.

I agree with hannahleahw, practice makes perfect.

A couple of tips I picked up from my preceptor and working in the ED.

- Don't necessarily stick right into the vein, sometimes approaching the vein from a slight angle makes for an easier entrance. Once you get return, advance the needle a little bit further before advancing the catheter - sometimes what is enough to get return is not enough to get the cathether in which = blown vein.

- A good trick I learned from an older nurse for someone that is a hard stick - we had this older fellow who had been stuck six times at a snf facility prior to coming in the ED and had nothing for veins and what he may have had was bruised to the point of being unusable. We took a warm, wet towel and wrapped it around his arm and hand for about 5 minutes - and wallah out popped a nice and usable vein on his hand that was nowhere to be found beforehand.

Venipuncture is one of those things that even the best "stickers" will have their mishaps! Some times it is just luck!