Originally posted by Bramble Iceshimmer
reply to post by Komaratzi11
You're taught to start IVs in hand first and work you way up the arm. Sometime you hit a nerve when sticking someone and it hurts for weeks. The hand
contains lots of nerves and small veins. Depending on the medication to be given you may have to start higher on the arm because some medications will
burn small veins. If not getting an IV isn't an option then depending on protocol you go for the shoulder, neck, clavicle and legs. In babies and
small children bone infusion may be an option. In the ER any and all including cut downs to get at the veins are possible.
Techs drawing blood usually start with the inner elbow because it's a big vein and easy to find. For infusions it's not the best because you bend
you arm too much and pull the catheter out. Immobilizing the arm is inconvenient for the patient as well as the staff.
Ok. Maybe I failed to be clear... When I was first put into the ambulance, I was given an IV. No unusual discomfort. The IV needle remained in my
vein until the end, when They removed it. Towards the end of My stay, this nurse and a doctor came in and told me it was just a pinched nerve and
that They were going to inject a muscle relaxer into My IV. I was surprised a bit when the nurse picked up My hand and started towards it with the
needle.
In past experience, My hand was never touched. They grabbed the IV line and injected whatever it was into the line. Out of reflex, I closed My eyes
and turned away when I saw the needle coming for Me, then experiencing something that was NOTHING like what I have experienced in the past. It felt
as if something was being jammed into My flesh. And I did NOT get the usual "rush/flush" that I get when injected.
And My hand has tingled and had periods of extreme discomfort ever since.
All this weirdness suggests that I did NOT have happen to Me what They said was happening.