IV Tips and Tricks for New Nurses

Tip 1: Stay calm and comfortable

You should be composed. This is just as important as your patient's comfort.

Tip 2: Relax patients

A comfortable patient is a relaxed patient. Ensure the patient especially pediatric patients is comfortable and sufficiently warm to prevent vasoconstriction.

Tip 3: Observe infection control measures

Use gloves in inserting a cannula into the patient. Intravenous insertion is an invasive procedure and requires an aseptic technique and proper infection control measures. Wipe a cotton swab or alcohol pad on the insertion site to minimize microorganisms in the area and also to visualize the chosen vein more clearly.

Tip 4: Anchor the right vein

It is absolutely essential to success. Do not overlook correct positioning for both you and your patient. 

• Assess the patient's vein for suitability for insertion. It can be touched by hand, or you can ask your patient. Know which vessels are suitable. Make sure the vein to be inserted is not fragile enough to explode.
• Make full use of gravity and warm compress, flick or tap the vein, let the patient's fist clench, or use the multiple-tourniquet technique, nitroglycerine to make the vein more visible or use a vein locator to directly locate the vein.

The forearm or top of the hand is often best because it allows you to reach the veins easily while also allowing your patient to sit in a relaxed position.

Tip 5: Consider using and choose an appropriate cannula size

When choosing a cannula, consider the type of infusion needed. Smaller gauge needles cannot accommodate blood transfusions and parenteral feeding. Large-diameter lumens allow higher fluid rates than small diameter lumens, allowing for the administration of higher concentrations of solutions or drugs. Needle-free devices are now widely used to minimize damage to the vein during and after insertion.

Note: You can hit a vein that is smaller than your needle, but it would be injured and would blow up because the needle is bigger than it is.

Tip 6: Choose the correct injection angle

Prepare to begin IV injection. Hold the catheter at a 15-30 degree angle over the skin with the bevel up and inform the patient that you will insert the needle.

Once you can see that there is a backflow of blood (i.e., "Flashback") from the veins, remove the tourniquet and completely advance the catheter and remove the needle altogether.

Tip 7: Practice, Practice, Practice

You can always practice this technique at home on a loved one. And I highly recommend a realistic IV practice kit instead. Familiarize yourself with the steps so that they become practically second nature. That will help you feel much more comfortable and ignore those anxious thoughts when you actually have to do it.

Are you ready to be confident as a nurse?

Do you feel anxious about starting IVs and want to really feel confident in your ability to nail it? The IV injection practice tool is recommended. So that, to practice, all you need is a needle, and you can practice over and over how to choose a vein, how to make it visible, how to put it in place and secure the skin, how to inject an IV, how to pull a needle and build your muscle memory for your real work.

Related Articles:

• Can a Phlebotomist Start an IV? Why?
• How Can I Practice Phlebotomy/Blood Draw at Home?
• Injection Types and Sites: What Nursing Students Need to Know
• Mastering Difficult IV Access - A Comprehensive Guide for Students