iv therapy or medication training

Trauma Columnist · Sep 8, 2011

Will move to the Australian Nursing Forum.

talaxandra · Sep 8, 2011

I'm not sure if you have to do a course - I'll FB a colleague from Scotland and see if she had to do one, and will let you know when I hear back. Welcome to Aus!

Beach Sunshine · Sep 8, 2011

Hi

Not sure if this helps, but RMIT in Melbourne has a course beginning in a few weeks - this is the link

At least it's a start - I'm sure if you contact them they can assist.

And welcome to Australia!

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Sep 8, 2011

Hey I researched a link for you. It is called Hot Courses and the organisation is called Care Training Australia in Melbourne, and they do a medication administration course which would cover IVs. Here is the link for you to click on - all the work is done for you!

http://www.hotcourses.com.au/australia/all-nursing-training-courses-

melbourne/vc-vic-all/da-ac35/order-cd-2/kw/melbourne/courses.html

Most universities would run private, short courses but it usually depends on numbers, ie: to get funding for a short course, they need so many people to enrol. I would contact all the universities as well.

EDIT: sorry the link woulldn't post properly. Just copy & paste the whole thing, or go to: hotcourses.com.au and type in what you require.

Good luck in Oz. I used to work with Irish nurses in Perth and they were great, very friendly too.

mreilly95 · Sep 8, 2011

Thanks everyone for your help so far. I think the course suggested in RMIT is still to advanced and the ones in hotspot are very similar. and all seem to run for 4months plus.

I did find one on hotspot that was called medication preparation but its not on at the minute, so perhaps i should be looking for something more like that??im looking for something over a shorter period of time if possible.

does any nurse from oz remember when they qualified what type training they did in oreder to give iv antibiotics on a ward? thanks again!!

K+MgSO4, BSN · Sep 9, 2011

OK have you done your nurse training or are you a undergraduate entry??

Not including IV therapy and antibiotic management in the course is a uniquely Irish thing. after I qualified I did the "IV study day" in Letterkenny. It was a load of nonsense. It is a rehash of common sense that you pick up on placements such as if a pt has swelling at an IV site or it is leaking then you remove the cannula. If a pt has an allergic reaction such as swelling of the limb, itching difficulty breathing or other symptoms that you stop the infusion and do NOT flush the line. Know where to access emergency drugs such as adrenaline 1:10000, how to call a MET or rapid response.

If you are concerned about how to mix drugs correctly then you can refer to a book that every drug room has called the Australian Injectables handbook. It has clear and concise directions how to mix meds and how much fluid they need to go in and how long they need to run for.

Also most wards have a clinical educator who is a resource for the ward staff to assist them with things that they are not familiar with. even as an agency staff you can still utilise them to answer your questions. Also both day shift has an in-charge who does not have a pt load so use them as well.

I'd say the medication course that you have been looking at is for ENs and not applicable to you. IV administration is part of the nurse training. Use common sense and stay safe and you should be OK.

Welcome to Melbourne the weather is lousy today isn't it? Hailstones?? it is spring!!

Beach Sunshine · Sep 9, 2011

Happy to help. I hope you find a good course soon that fits your requirements. BTW, if you're interested in other work in future, check out All Jobs Health (here's a link). They list jobs from agencies as well as private advetisers, so you'll get a good range of options. Enjoy Melb!

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Sep 9, 2011

Also check out short courses in the newspaper. Some training agencies run 1 or 2 day courses, there's one here for Adelaide, dunno re Melb.

Can you not just ask them to teach you as you get onto the ward? I couldn't get a pump to go the other day (it was a 3 line pump and I didn't hit the right button for the primary line) - the nurses just go through it with me, or anything I'm unsure about - they are always fine (I work agency and did a lot of psych so I forgot how to use pumps and some IV paraphernalia). It isn't that hard really, and you get used to using them.

Every medication room in Oz has an injectable drug book, a huge manual that tells you how IV drugs are re-constituted and also info on how they are given, etc. Most hospitals I've worked at also have IV/IM drug info on sheets stuck to the drug cupboards up top. If unsure, I always ask other RNs before mixing up and giving meds (you need to check them with another RN anyway). I doubt you would be stuck anywhere for help. Where will you be working?

Once you've done a few IVs you'll be right, I reckon!

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Sep 9, 2011

OK have you done your nurse training or are you a undergraduate entry??
Not including IV therapy and antibiotic management in the course is a uniquely Irish thing. after I qualified I did the "IV study day" in Letterkenny. It was a load of nonsense. It is a rehash of common sense that you pick up on placements such as if a pt has swelling at an IV site or it is leaking then you remove the cannula. If a pt has an allergic reaction such as swelling of the limb, itching difficulty breathing or other symptoms that you stop the infusion and do NOT flush the line. Know where to access emergency drugs such as adrenaline 1:10000, how to call a MET or rapid response.
If you are concerned about how to mix drugs correctly then you can refer to a book that every drug room has called the Australian Injectables handbook. It has clear and concise directions how to mix meds and how much fluid they need to go in and how long they need to run for.
Also most wards have a clinical educator who is a resource for the ward staff to assist them with things that they are not familiar with. even as an agency staff you can still utilise them to answer your questions. Also both day shift has an in-charge who does not have a pt load so use them as well.
I'd say the medication course that you have been looking at is for ENs and not applicable to you. IV administration is part of the nurse training. Use common sense and stay safe and you should be OK.
Welcome to Melbourne the weather is lousy today isn't it? Hailstones?? it is spring!!

Great advice. It's raining and miserably cold here in Adelaide today, but a few days ago it was nice and warm! I wish summer would come and just STAY for God's sake!

mreilly95 · Sep 9, 2011

thanks again everyone for being so helpful and welcomining!!

im just qualified since sept 2010 and i did the direct entry midiwfiery course which was 4yrs midwifery, i havent done my nursing.

I know in theory most the info and bou checking with another nurse etc, its just i thought maybe i should just do the course nehow! kinda like the course you said you done in letterkenny. Ill keep any eye out anyhow for courses and just ask and see how i get on! just joined an agency so not sure exactly what hospitals yet, they listed alot of private and public maternity hospitals in around melbourne cbd to me! think ill put myself down to start nights next week, might be little quiter on nights and get used of things here! very nervous!!!! thanks again!

talaxandra · Sep 9, 2011

I've worked with a lot of OS-educated nurses who've done their first shifts with us, on nights, and think it's a bad idea. Things are absolutely often quieter, in terms of patient throughput, visitors, allied health and admin (all reasons I love nights!) but there's also way less support, fewer people to help you, and way more scope for being isolated and making mistakes. I'd strongly recommend doing at least a week's worth of days first, preferrably at a couple of different sites, to get a feel for things.

I heard back from my friend who trained in Scotland -

We didn't do IV stuff as students. Was an extra course I did when I was still with NHS. [Our hospital] was happy to let me do IVs without extra training from them.

I think anything that's longer than a day or so is definitely too much and, as K+MgSO4 said, probably aimed at enrolled nurses getting medication endorsement. The main things you need to know are IV site management, pump set up and trouble-shooting, and the mechanics of priming a line, adding in a burette, attaching an add-a-line etc. As other members have posted, the Yellow Bible had all the info about volume, dilution and speed of administration; at my hospital the pharmacists also write that on the chart for anti's (eg"in 100ml over 1 hour") - if you're conflicted between the Book and the pharmacist, they overrule the Book!

Otherwise you only need to know the same things about IV meds that you should about all meds - what's it for, what's the usual dose range, what might this interact with, when should I withhold it, what are its potential SE's etc.

Good luck :)