HELP! im so nervous. im a new grad, and for some reason, my first flu shot clinic assignment, I WILL BE MYSELF!! i'm sooooooooooooo nervous!!
FLU SHOTS are administered IM, i know this....I definitely need to aspirate right? i am asking because sometimes when I GET THE FLU SHOT, the nurse doesn't aspirate! but i have to right????
and the clinic is giving me 3mL syringe, i know i have to inject the whole needle in there, but what if the patient is really skinny? what then??? ahhh im freaking myself out!!!
Just remember, there is rarely much pain at the time of the actual injection (you can remind your patients of that too!) The soreness doesn't really set in until a few hours later. I just got my shot last week. It's funny that as many times as I've gotten a flu shot, each time I still forget that it doesn't hurt right away. I walk in thinking, "this is gonna hurt!" and then it doesn't. Remembering that will help calm your nerves and your pt's.
Take a breath. You'll be fine. After you do two of them, you'll be a pro. They are just like any other IM shot. Yes, aspirate and if no blood inject. For the really skinny people, use a shorter needle and grab as much flesh as you can before injecting.
The agency I'm working for only gave me 3mL syringes....so don't put the whole needle in right? I wish Im not by myself tomorrow. Thanks for the advice!
OP, I think I work for the company you're talking about, and it's really not so bad giving them by yourself. I was in your shoes about a month ago. Are you sure they're giving you 3ml syringes though? The flu shot dosage is only 0.5 ml.
If the patient is very thin, I grab the deltoid and inject it while pinched. I've STILL hit bone a couple times, but the patient doesn't seem to flinch.
Good luck. You'll be fine!
Yeh they gave me 3mL...and 0.5mL for each dose. I asked about aspirating because my friend did a flu shot during clinicals and when she aspirated, there was blood. She said the pt was really skinny.
Ok - I have to ask why NOT aspirate? Other than the needle is in the patient for the extra half a second it takes to do this and might cause a little extra discomfort (but in my experience, patients do not notice if you do or don't aspirate). I was taught to aspirate with ANY IM injections.
Yeh I was just curious what u guys do for flu shots. At school, for IM injections to aspirate. But when I get flu shots, I noticed the nurse doesn't aspirate. But I think I'll aspirate because one of my friends gave a flu shot during clinicals...she aspirated and there was blood.....
Just curious about really skinny people bc the needle is long...
I understand how you're nervous but I'm sure you've been taught this and possibly gave injections during clinicals?
It really will help you in the long run to research things yourself. Never trust information given on an internet forum. You now have a license to protect and getting into the bad habit of asking advice from just anyone could be damaging to your career.
Of course it was covered during nursing school and I've given shots during clinicals. This is a forum and I think it's ok to ask for suggestions. I'm a new grad and I have never been left alone while giving someone a shot. An instructor or nurse will always be on my side. So for this first assignment, I'm all alone. So yeh I wrote here for suggestions and this forum makes me feel less nervous from others past experiences.
Take a breath. You'll be fine. After you do two of them, you'll be a pro. They are just like any other IM shot. Yes, aspirate and if no blood inject. For the really skinny people, use a shorter needle and grab as much flesh as you can before injecting.
Yeh I was just curious what u guys do for flu shots. At school, for IM injections to aspirate. But when I get flu shots, I noticed the nurse doesn't aspirate. But I think I'll aspirate because one of my friends gave a flu shot during clinicals...she aspirated and there was blood.....
Just curious about really skinny people bc the needle is long...
There are lots of good resources online for this topic. CDC is a good start. Just do some research. And be prepared for some off the wall questions such as is it ok to donate a gallon of blood, climb Mt. Everest, etc.
AJPV
366 Posts
Just remember, there is rarely much pain at the time of the actual injection (you can remind your patients of that too!) The soreness doesn't really set in until a few hours later. I just got my shot last week. It's funny that as many times as I've gotten a flu shot, each time I still forget that it doesn't hurt right away. I walk in thinking, "this is gonna hurt!" and then it doesn't. Remembering that will help calm your nerves and your pt's.