Drawing up...

Do you hate shots? I sometimes do, especially when the solution they are injecting is really thick.

Some people love getting shots (they get this crazy look in their eyes, creeps me out just a bit).

I, however, LOVE GIVING shots!!!

It takes lots of practice not as easy as I would have liked. When giving an injection with a needle many things need to happen. First the nurse needs to check the eMAR with the Kardex, and if they don't match up, the nurse then goes to the MD orders (the MD orders are always correct). Then the nurse will go to the medication room and retrieve all the medications needed while doing the 5 Rights. Right dose, right patient, right medication, right time, and right route. This needs to be done twice or more.

Wow that was a lot.

Drawing up medication in a syringe is not easy. Orders can come in many different types, like mL, mg, units, etc... Lots of calculation goes into this, so nurses better know their stuff. I hate math. :( After figuring out how much is needed then nurse must then keep everything sterile and I mean everything. Plus there can be NO air bubbles. If air bubbles are inside a flick of the syringe is needed until the bubble is gone. Why? bubbles can go in anything and travel to the heart, lungs, or brain and that my dear person reading this blog is BAD!!!

Finally after all the medication is ready to give, the nurse then goes into the patients room and does the 5 rghts one more time (would be very very very bad if a nurse gave the wrong meds to a patient, lots of problems). If everyhing is correct the nurse then may give the injections.