mom2lillian
New member
Perhaps everyone else's IV companies are already doing this but if not I have two major improvements this time in the goods I am using and so I wanted to pass them along.
A-using a cloroprep stick instead of the swabs with betadine and alcohol. Old way for me had 3 sticks of each to use and we had a hard time getting the betadine off and it really irritates my skin. New way, one swab, with solution in a dispenser (looks like what you use to wash dishes with the sponge on the end and solution in tube) you rub for 30 seconds, let dry 30 seconds and done! They starting using these at my hospital as its more effective and so I asked IV guys about it and they had already had it but never offered it to me.
B-this is a biggie. Its called an elastomeric pump. I had been offered this before but they called it a 'little squeezy ball' and I figured no thanks I'll do it too fast and make myself sick (patience is not my specialty <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif" border="0"> ) ANyway this is a small ball full of tobra that has a tube sticking out of it, you hook it to your port/picc whatever turn it on and it automatically dispenses over the course of 1 hour so you can wake up hook up turn on and got back to sleep she said it wont get kinked and stop working like an IV line (this was my previous problem if I started it and went back to sleep). Anyway I am VERY impressed with it.
I think the IV's have evolved so much just past 5 years I have been doing them. Before I had to do Tobra 2x day now only once, I can use the elastomeric pump too. I used to have to do ceftaz in iv bag now I just use a 35ml prefilled syringe over 5-10 min to do the push. It really is becoming very convenient. Now if they didnt make me so tired and toxic feeling!
A-using a cloroprep stick instead of the swabs with betadine and alcohol. Old way for me had 3 sticks of each to use and we had a hard time getting the betadine off and it really irritates my skin. New way, one swab, with solution in a dispenser (looks like what you use to wash dishes with the sponge on the end and solution in tube) you rub for 30 seconds, let dry 30 seconds and done! They starting using these at my hospital as its more effective and so I asked IV guys about it and they had already had it but never offered it to me.
B-this is a biggie. Its called an elastomeric pump. I had been offered this before but they called it a 'little squeezy ball' and I figured no thanks I'll do it too fast and make myself sick (patience is not my specialty <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif" border="0"> ) ANyway this is a small ball full of tobra that has a tube sticking out of it, you hook it to your port/picc whatever turn it on and it automatically dispenses over the course of 1 hour so you can wake up hook up turn on and got back to sleep she said it wont get kinked and stop working like an IV line (this was my previous problem if I started it and went back to sleep). Anyway I am VERY impressed with it.
I think the IV's have evolved so much just past 5 years I have been doing them. Before I had to do Tobra 2x day now only once, I can use the elastomeric pump too. I used to have to do ceftaz in iv bag now I just use a 35ml prefilled syringe over 5-10 min to do the push. It really is becoming very convenient. Now if they didnt make me so tired and toxic feeling!