Ugh! Sheared IV

Nurses General Nursing

Published

So I was attempting an IV insertion, hit flash, and then lowered and attempted to insert. Couldn't, figured I would pull back a tad and try again, no luck. So I figured I needed to start over, pulled the catheter out... Low and behold.. The needle had pierced the plastic catheter and completely bent it. I did check, the tip was definitely intact and the piece had not fallen off..I told the nurse educator and she said not

to worry.

But it hear I am, three weeks later, scared out of my mind as the patient unexpectedly passed two weeks later! I am struggling to sleep and am looking for advice. Has this ever happened to someone when attempting an IV insertion? I am sure that the tip was intact, but am still freaking out! Advice so needed! I don't know whether I am at fault!

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Specializes in ICU.

You were not at fault. Things like this happen sometimes. You did the right thing by ensuring that the tip of the catheter and needle were intact. The patient did not suffer any further harm related to what happened, and you did not contribute to their death because of this.

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If any piece of the catheter WAS floating around the vascular system, it would have killed the patient long before 2 weeks.

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You saw the tip intact and as a previous poster mentioned, it was weeks before the patient died. I've seen lines snap and get sucked into the body. You will see almost instant ectopy on the monitor when it reaches the heart and they will be symptomatic and head to the OR STAT. And the patients I've seen that happen to still survived.

You are all good.

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