2 0
O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 5
I D E A S T H A T W O R K
I
'm sure
you've
experi-
enced this sit-
uation before.
You perform
an IV start that
you think is
successful.
After opening
the roller
clamp on the
tubing, you
stare in disbe-
lief as the
site's sur-
rounding tis-
sue expands
while the IV
bag's fluid
flows.
Obviously an
unsuccessful,
infiltration-blown IV, right?
Not so fast. Things might not be as bad as they seem. Sometimes,
the IV catheter is in the right place. How can you check if it's
intravascular? A simple trick: Apply firm pressure some distance
above (proximal to) the IV site while observing the drip chamber.
S A V E A N I V
Quick Trick for Your "Unsuccessful" Starts
