Drawing blood is hard. It’s often uncomfortable for your patients. You’ve got a busy caseload with a million things to keep track of and you may be dealing with burnout from the nursing shortage. Let’s face it, nurses face a lot of challenges in 2021. Having the right tools, like specialty tourniquets, can make a big difference!
Before you draw a patient’s blood, make sure you have all the necessary equipment, Nurse.org has a helpful list, including:
- Personal Protective Equipment
- Appropriate blood-drawing needles
- Tourniquet
- Alcohol swabs for skin disinfection
- Gauze
- Puncture resistant sharps container
The Right Tool for the Job
While most of the equipment is standard, have you considered the difference having the right size or texture tourniquet can make? Some care facilities only have one or two options. Your patients come in all shapes and sizes. If you are working with infants, children or obese patients, it is critical to have an appropriately sized tourniquet. If your patient has sensitive skin, a textured option is less likely to tear the skin.
Caresfield has you covered with a selection of specialty non-latex and odor-free options in an assortment of colors. The color of your tourniquet may seem inconsequential, but there are a number of potential health risks that arise from leaving a tourniquet on too long, including: permanent muscular, vascular or even neurological damage. A brightly colored option can stand out from the muted tones typically used in healthcare settings.
According to Dennis Ernst MT(ASCP), NCPT (NCCT)’s article at the Center for Phlebotomy Education; patient posture, prolonged tourniquet application and fist pumping can lead to hemoconcentration, an abnormal concentration of blood.
“Blood becomes concentrated, or thickens, when the proportion of cells and other larger elements of the blood increases to such a degree that it no longer reflects the patient’s actual health status,” Ernst wrote. “Since most of the objective information physicians receive about the well-being of their patients come from laboratory test results, it is critical that specimen collection personnel recognize and prevent situations that lead to hemoconcentration.”
Benefits of Specialty Tourniquets
Proper preparation helps take the pressure off of phlebotomy so you can provide your patients the highest standard of care. Using Carefield’s specialty tourniquets helps by:
- Making patients more comfortable
- Reducing leave-on accidents
Don’t risk your patients’ safety by using tourniquet hacks. Help ease the pressure of your busy patient load by making sure you have all the proper tools for phlebotomy, including the right sized tourniquets!
