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.
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.
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u/[deleted] Jun 10 '25
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