One thing I really enjoy here is that I get to work with children. Back in Oregon, since I work as a caregiver in a nursing home, I work with a strictly geriatric demographic. I thoroughly enjoy working with the elderly, but working with children presents its own set of challenges.
For example, I learned today that when giving an IVT injection, it's common practice (here at least) to kink the IV line so when the medication is introduced it goes straight into the vein instead of backflowing through the tube. This ensures a quicker delivery. Sometimes though, the antibiotic can be a little strong, causing a stinging sensation. With adults, the pain is easily dismissed, but for a pediatric patient, it can cause unneeded stress. So, the nurses here often don't kink the tube so the medication goes into the veins a little bit slower (due to backflow), resulting in a reduction of pain.
An even bigger challenge is trying to perform an IVT injection after the child has just had an IV inserted. They see you walk in with a needle and they assume you're going to poke them again. Even babies recognize needles pretty quickly after getting an IV. It's a challenge, to say the least, trying to insert a needle while the patient is flailing about.
Anyway, aside from pediatric exposure, I was also more acquainted with proper medical dispensing techniques:
- Ask the patient their name.
- Check their wristband.
- Describe what the medication is
for (this is the tough part for me because I still can't speak
fluent Bisaya).
- Watch the patient take the medication.
The more clinical exposure the better. Cheers!
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