Categories: Break RoomNursing Blogs>Rebekah Child

5 things NOT to say to the person starting your IV

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If I had a quarter for every time I heard any of these, I could retire!!

1. “I want the doctor to do it.” I promise you, you do not. They probably started one in medical school and it was most likely a disaster.

2. “I have rolling veins.” Everyone does. That is what traction is for.

3. “Don’t go there, it will hurt.” Newsflash. It is a needle. It will hurt. If you tell me where to put your IV I will probably miss. The jury is out on whether or not I will miss on purpose.

4. “Are you any good at this?” Like I would tell you ‘no.’

5. “I have terrible veins.” People who say this usually have a big fat juicy vein right in the antecubital space.

Rebekah Child

Rebekah Child attended the University of Southern California for her bachelor's in nursing and decided to brave the academic waters and return for her master's in nursing education, graduating in 2003 from Mount St. Mary's. Rebekah has also taught nursing clinical and theory at numerous Southern California nursing schools and has been an emergency nurse since 2002. She is currently one of the clinical educators for an emergency department in Southern California and a student (again!) in the doctoral program at the University of California, Los Angeles.