IVs

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Mar 13, 2009

I recommend you contact the manager of same day surgery (if you have one) or another nursing unit. Ask them to let you come in on your OWN time, if your boss won't agree to inservice time. Another option is to be precepted by a nurse who is both good at IV's and at teaching. Ask your Educator. In my experience the pedi nurses excel because they want to make SURE the line stays in and are used to working with babies up to big adolescents. The key is ask for help and ask for honest feedback. Unless you have vision problems you probably just need confidence.

ERjodiRN · Mar 13, 2009

i agree with classicdame. in all honesty, a class or inservice isn't going to be much help because fake arms are nothing like human arms. out patient surgery, pre-op, and the ER are great areas to go to. try to get something set up where your sole purpose is to start iv's for several hours. another important thing is to know and be comfortable with the supplies you will be using. the more comfortable you are with that, the smoother the whole process will be.

Faeriewand, ASN, RN · Mar 13, 2009

I learned by taking a class in IV cert and we practiced on fake arms first and then on each other. Then at my job they sent me to same day surgery which was fantastic experience! I highly recommend it. :)

SteffersRN87, BSN, RN · Mar 14, 2009

Honestly, it just takes practice! Ask your manager/director if you could possible spend a day with IV team.

sweetlass · Mar 14, 2009

For first timers, just observed at first,if already confident enough, ask your in-charge to let you do it.,its really a self-fulfillment if you got it on your first shot! Practice makes perfect! ^_^

mama_d, BSN, RN · Mar 14, 2009

I'm a pretty good shot with an IV, I got there by practice practice practice! When I first started on the floor, if I had time to, I'd ask other nurses who had outdated IV's that needed to be changed so I could go in and give it a whirl.

Now I'm one of the handful of people that others on the floor come to first for hard sticks, but there's one nurse who is in a league of his own. So I try to go in and help him out with those impossible sticks, ask questions, and observe his technique in an effort to finesse my own. I'm still not as good as he is yet, it's possible I never may be, but I keep on trying.