And I would agree with Tim and the others that have serious
reservations about this practice. Lynn
At 7:02 AM -0700 9/15/06, Bev and Tim Royer wrote:
Another thing we need to think about is nerve damage. My veins even on a
good day at the antecub are not easy to find and I have had some probe and
some extreme pain when they go deep. I truly believe that ultrasound needs
to be left those who use it all the time and have a deep knowledge of
anatomy and physiology and aseptic technique. This could end up with more
facilities going to court over nerve damage and/or infection. If a
phlebotomist or RT has the same education as a RN with critical thinking
skills in this area, I might think differently.
Using ultrasound is not just a skill.
Timothy Royer, BSN, CRNI
Nurse Manager / Vascular Access / Diagnostic Service
VA Puget Sound Health Care System
Seattle, WA
PS - AVA Conference in Indy was a great time and informative! It has taken
me a few days to rest up.
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
On Behalf Of Erickson, Wendy
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2006 4:38 AM
To: DAVID LONGSETH; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: RE: RT's using US for ABG's
Use caution! We had an outbreak of infections related to contaminated
ultrasound gel several years ago. The bottles were being refilled from a
large supply, rather than using a new bottle when empty. I would be very
concerned about using non-sterile gel anywhere near a venipuncture site.
Wendy Erickson RN
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of DAVID LONGSETH
Sent: Thursday, September 14, 2006 8:52 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: RT's using US for ABG's
Similar to the 'phlebotomists using US' but different enough for another
thread.
A couple of our RT's are interested in using US for ABG's. The training and
competencies shouldn't be too hard to do,and they have access to a Site-Rite
2. What I'd like to do is a pre-audit of palpation ABG's in terms of time to
get the sample and # of sticks,then train a few in US guidance and then see
how the times,sticks to pt. and materials used compare.
Now,the one thing that I still can't decide is whether to have them use a
sterile sleeve over the probe or not. Drawing ABG's is not a sterile
procedure per se,so my instinct is to have them disinfect the probe before
and after the stick but maybe someone out there has other views.
Thaks for any input,
David
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Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RNC, CRNI
Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc.
126 Main Street, PO Box 10
Milner, GA 30257
http://www.hadawayassociates.com
office 770-358-7861
