RN's who cannot insert IV's being Fired???

candid · Jun 7, 2006

i just gradute as an rn. how do i get the training for iv insertion. i want to find out beside the facility training is there any other way.i live in the orlando florida area

ZASHAGALKA, RN · Jun 7, 2006

i just gradute as an rn. how do i get the training for iv insertion. i want to find out beside the facility training is there any other way.i live in the orlando florida area

Your facility will help you.

The key to becoming proficient at IV starts is sheer practice. Try to start every IV you can. Let your co-workers know you are trying to learn and start theirs.

It's just a skill that takes practice.

~faith,

Timothy.

princessmogan · Jun 7, 2006

Hello! just wanna know if it is mandatory for all RN's to insert IV's? Because a fellow nurse who is more than well experienced and very skillful in other procedures and previously IV certified too who refused to do IV's was terminated. Nurse claims she developed phobia to it after a very bad experience with a patient. Can a person really be forced to do anything that she is not comfortable and has developed an aversion to it. Is it fair to the hospital and to the nurse? Thanks!

I know in school we had a very long discussion on this very topic (refusing/comfort levels) and we were told it was not ok to refuse, however never to do anything you weren't comfortable with (ie:above) - tell a shift manager, boss, anyone your reasons and that should be good enough.

Thats too bad!

soapmom · Jun 7, 2006

i was not trained to start iv's or to draw blood in nursing school. certainly firing is a waste of skills. that nurse needs to go to a refresher course for iv's. if she then refuses, then maybe she should be disciplined.

i can sympathize with feeling like you are being dumped on by other nurses. i used to work nights on a med/surg floor. i got very good at starting iv's. the nurse on the other floor (small hospital) was not good at it or refused to do it, so i got called down there frequently. yes, i felt imposed upon. in another job, i had a nurse who couldn't draw blood and she'd always figure out a way for me to do it. i finally put my foot down and told her she needed to learn herself. sadly, she didn't know how to put a needle on a syringe either.

we're all taught different things. thank goodness for those nurses in facilities who take you under their wings and show you how to do it properly. ojt was how i learned iv and phlebotomy skills.

good luck everyone. firing.......tooooooo harsh.

alice

unwillingly retired rn

ritajasmine · Jun 7, 2006

Being fired because you cant insert IV is devastating, inserting a IV is just one of the skills and tasks nurses do everyday,and there's a lot more task she is capable to do. Work in Ireland as a nurse and she willbe save from inserting an IV. Because you are not allowed to insert IV unless you have been certified. Tell her to try to work in Ireland.

lisabeth · Jun 7, 2006

I just have to ask this question. What happened? I have to admit, I already have a phobia of needles. Not so much giving shots, but drawing blood and I.V.'s really bothers me. I have read many posts where other pre-nursing students have the same problem but overcome it.

Another question for nursing students who might read this, or for nurses when you were in the nursing program, were there many other students who couldnt overcome this fear?

While I really love every part of the pre-requistes, and Pharmacology is no exeption, I am really starting to wonder if this is really for me. I dont know why, but I will admit, I.V.s and drawing blood is in the back of my head.

Thanks for any replies to this.

SunshineBaby · Jun 7, 2006

Not learning a skill in Nursing school is no excuse for not being willing to try. It's Nursing school people, not osmosis. There is no way you can expect to be given a chance to become proficient in every aspect of the job before graduation. That's what your first years in Nursing are all about.

I'm a senior in a BSN program. At my school we are given the chance to start IV's if the opportunity arises. I've gotten to start 2. Mostly, because I seize any opportunity that is available. Lots of my classmates miss out because our instructor will ask, would you like to try, and they're to scared to give it a shot. I'm scared too, but I swallow that fear and use it as a motivator. When I go into a patient's room, I act confident. They have to be told we are a student and you know what, whether they let you do it sometimes depends on how you handle yourself. Never let them see you sweat.

My only advice to those in school..never let fear keep you from doing something. You will miss out on so many opportunities. Everyone starts off at the same place. Practice every chance you get!

Good luck to all the students out there!

P.S. I got both IV's on the first try and both patient's commented on my skill :)

rn1959 · Jun 8, 2006

YES it is common that you have to be proficient in all the "mandatory skills" designated by the facility or you will be fired. I would advise anyone not comfortable with IV skills take an IV refresher course. It is available at some colleges and http://nursingtransitions.com. If you can't find one you can take the IV certiifcation class geared towards LVN's for practice with the sticks, but it won't address centrall lines/PICC's.

JessicRN · Jun 8, 2006

Refusing to start IV's is like refusing to work with a pt with AIDS, you can and will be fired. Starting IV's does not only requires a skill but every single time I start an IV I risk my health. I could get AIDS, or Hep C. Is it fair for me to risk my health because a nurse has a phobia or just does not want to try???? As for those people who say they are not good at IV's, practice is the best policy. If you have an IV team ask to go with them. If not spent time in the ED you will get lots of practice.

Animalhouse · Jun 8, 2006

I spend part of every shift starting and restarting IV's for other nurses where I work.

My training was a busy hospital and we started an IV on every patient who came in. What I learned at this hospital was how little I learned in nursing school and how little I knew as a grad nurse.

I have found that nursing home nurses come straight from school to the job and dont' get the experience in critical care.

Maybe to make this extra work load more palatable the facility could pay me more..but my pay scale is the same as the rest of the staff nurses.

I just paid for a two day training program 100 miles from my home...hotel, all costs, out of my pocket. I needed the updated training for my IV certification.

NO other nurse at this facility bothered to take the class...the facility would not pay for it.

I did it for ME...so I would be up to date. I found at least six things during that class that I didn't know and that had been changed.

PICC lines are coming to nursing homes, so are central lines..knowing how to care for these is critical..

I worry about how long I am going to be the only staff nurse that knows about these. And I have a heavy work load of my own...without going to other wings to start IV's and set pumps.

HappyJaxRN · Jun 8, 2006

Hello! just wanna know if it is mandatory for all RN's to insert IV's? Because a fellow nurse who is more than well experienced and very skillful in other procedures and previously IV certified too who refused to do IV's was terminated. Nurse claims she developed phobia to it after a very bad experience with a patient. Can a person really be forced to do anything that she is not comfortable and has developed an aversion to it. Is it fair to the hospital and to the nurse? Thanks!

There was probably something else going on there....

freymaria · Jun 9, 2006

I just hope that nurse will take her being fired from the hospital to overcome that phobia and have a refresher course in IV insertion.