As a cancer survivor whose been poked more times than I care to remember - the patient will always feel something. With that said though, the difference between a nursing student and a trained and experienced phlebotomist is night and day. One pokes 4-5 times missing the vein and digging around. The other is so gentle and precise you barely even feel it. Love me a good phlebotomist!
I'm that nurse. Worst case scenario is the other nurses destroyed your arms before calling me, and I'll just use the ultrasound. I won't say I never miss, but it is an exceedingly rare occasion.
That’s awesome. And thanks for being that ONE nurse!
I’m curious if you think you have an innate talent for finding veins or if you could teach other nurses so they’d be just as good? Do they just not emphasize it in school or training?
I got a 15 minute class in the Army and was then told to start an IV on my buddy. I was the only one to get it on the 1st try. I obviously have a natural ability. I do teach tips and tricks to my fellow nurses to help them get better. Plus, I have a rule: Don't come get me unless you've at least tried once. You can't get better just handing it off to me every time. I don't work every day after all. Some just never get past the mediocre level of ability. School gives you a basic concept and teaches you how to not kill someone in the real world. Clinicals and that 1st year of being a nurse is where the average person with no medical background starts to truly develop skill.
U r loved! Having a few heart attacks, and my mother Having cancer. After, my father died of the same. You, are golden, in that small space of watching someone suffer less.... I appreciate you! I also love ur work ethic! Ur skills, make the pain of every instance small. I'd clap, but u wouldn't hear it. Keep it up! Ur the single reason I go to a certain hospital. Looking for people, just like u. If you can hear my clap from PA, keep it with you, u, are a treasure!
Ive always wondered why pros don’t use the “flagging” technique a lot of people who IV themselves use; after the needle is under the skin you draw back a bit to create a vacuum, then when you pierce the vein the blood surges in so you know you have a vein.
I figured it’s probably somewhat risky of drawing something into the syringe and clogging up it, ir injecting it into the bloodstream, and it does require a bit if finesse to do. But as someone who has IV’d tons of drugs its helped keep my veins and intact and arms without a mark.
The way IV needles are set up, that isn't possible. Used to be. Drawing blood using a butterfly, that is possible. However, it is typically unnecessary because with a tourniquet, you have enough back pressure to get a flash of blood in the tubing. Many times, even without a tourniquet, you'll still get a flash.
This reminds me of when I was younger. We were in the emergency room, my sister had something wrong I don't remember, they tried and tried to get a vein but left to get someone else. My dad who was a crna just did it quickly while the nurse was gone and came in with a panic seeing my dad finish up before he told her that he was a crna who worked in that very hospital.
I actually had a nurse explain to me during a blood draw that the pain people usually feel is from the alcohol swab that they do before entering with the needle. She showed me by waiting a good bit after the swab (I assume to let it evaporate a lot) and then putting the needle in and to my surprise it was one of the only times I didn't feel pain.
Same way with vaccinations. I found a guy at Walmart who would actually swab it and then blow on it or use paper to fan it before giving me the shot. Practically painless. So all the other people I guess just don’t care, which really really sucks.
He shouldn’t blow on it! that’s just asking to decontaminate what was once a relatively clean surface, even fanning is against best practice. The alcohol evaporates within 30 seconds due to latent body heat.
Noted. Main point was that this is probably part of training that one can wait until the alcohol dries and most medical people don’t, which is sadistic.
I'd say they don't know. That's not something they teach in nursing school or where I originally learned, Army Medic training. They glance over letting it dry to kill the most microorganisms. Nothing mentioned about preventing pain.
When I was doing my phlebotomy externship in a hospital, I stuck an elderly woman and she told me that she didn't feel it at all. It made me feel so good.
One time, I had a guy digging around in my arm for almost 50 minutes. He eventually gave up and announced that it was in, based on precisely zero evidence. My arm blew up like a football and he just pretended not to notice. I'm pretty sure he was a student, but only because somebody with any experience would have known to ask for help.
I literally fainted yesterday from someone digging around to take blood from me. Tried again a couple of hours later with a good phlebotomist and I didn't even realise they had finished.
Hospitals can give a wide variety of expertise and experience. I had nurses tell me, while I literally was undergoing treatment for cancer of my immune system, that Covid was just like the flu and nothing to worry about. This was in April and May of 2020. It was rough...
Unfortunately, as a nurse, I can confirm that this level of stupidity was rampant. One of my supervisors told me covid was only passed via the fecal oral route. I snapped back that that seemed to be not plausible because I doubt that many people are licking each others butts. Never mind that I have a minor in clinical microbiology.
Good on ya. Most medical personnel are cool. Honestly this wasn't the first time I've had that happen. Had 4 tries at a blood donation a few years back (before the blood cancer, naturally). My veins aren't even particularly tricky to hit, either.
I needed an MRI as a young teen and a doctor tried to stick me fourteen times in the same spot. My mother finally intervened when I was sobbing and he was scolding me as he prepared to try again. Multiple nurses did not intervene, I'm assuming because this guy was a major dick and outranked them. It can be rough in environments where a doctor complaining might be the end of your job. I don't blame them, but I sure as hell blame him.
A nurse got the other arm on the first try. I am usually a very easy jab so I don't know what was wrong with that doctor, possibly apart from sheer incompetence.
Honestly, you should blame them. Patient advocacy is one of the primary responsibilities of the nurse, it’s their job to stand up to doctors. Docs only really have authority over nurses when it comes to their patients, they can’t get a nurse fired (usually).
That's fair. It was a long time ago and I think I remember one trying to step in, but very meekly and giving up quickly. It definitely seemed at the time that everyone was afraid of him and didn't want to make a fuss, me included.
It seems like nurses are getting much more training in being assertive and protecting patients in recent years, which is wonderful. Having someone in a perceived position of authority on your team makes a big difference.
My husband lost count around 20 tries until they ended up putting it in my neck. Everyone took their turn and tried everywhere. I genuinely looked like I got hit by a truck afterwards.
I once got poked by a student, I had to get a heavy metals test when I worked at a recycling center. I know she was new and learning, but god damn she stuck me like a pin cushion and then tried digging. I had a bruise the size of a football the next day.
Good God, you brought back memories of being stuck like 8 times trying to find a good vein the first time I went through chemo. Got a port soon after that and that thing was a godsend!
I can certainly agree with this as i donate plasma regularly. If I see my usual, i know its not gunna be painful....a new face and I instantly get nervous.
I agree. A good phlebotomist makes all the difference. Nobody should ever stick you more than twice but I know it happens all too often so I'm sorry about that and I commend you for all you've been through. It's not a perfect world so some people will always feel something but there are times when the patient and the technician can achieve perfect harmony and you get a ghost needle 😂 that's what I strive for every day but I'll settle for a tiny pinch and still be happy lol
As a patient - ultimately it doesn't matter. :) When we get our blood drawn it's usually not by choice either way. Not many people are getting stuck just to get stuck - know what I mean? Everyone, nurses included, have to start somewhere.
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u/Heffe3737 Jun 10 '25
As a cancer survivor whose been poked more times than I care to remember - the patient will always feel something. With that said though, the difference between a nursing student and a trained and experienced phlebotomist is night and day. One pokes 4-5 times missing the vein and digging around. The other is so gentle and precise you barely even feel it. Love me a good phlebotomist!