IV Therapy for Dummies (For Dummies)

Are you an aspiring nurse, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant struggling with IV therapy? Help is here! IV Therapy For Dummies gives you current, easy-to-follow guidance on everything you'll encounter in class, including delivery methods, flow rates, legal issues, professional standards, and documentation. So what are you waiting for?

• Tap into it — get the scoop on the medical-legal aspects of IV therapy, including federal, state, and institutional standards of care, and find out how to avoid malpractice problems and keep yourself and your patients safe
• Find your type — journey into the cellular world of fluid and electrolyte balance, get the 4-1-1 on the components and compatibilities of life-saving blood products, and look at the pros and cons of chemotherapy
• Get familiar with tools of the trade — find out how to administer medications by IV push and piggyback and how to put the power of technology to work with infusion pumps, auto-syringe pumps, and patient-controlled anesthesia pumps
• Focus on administration — get a rundown on how to assess patients, administer specialty IV substances, and manage adverse IV reactions

Open the book and find:

• Common types of IV therapy
• Main ways to administer IVs
• The role you play in IV therapy
• Legal standards of care
• Ways to implement risk- management strategies
• Blood component therapy basics
• The keys to diligent documentation
• Simplified methods for calculating common IV infusion rates and dosages
• Considerations for unique populations

Learn to:

• Make sense of delivery methods and flow rates
• Get a handle on legal issues and documentation
• Tailor therapies to patients' needs

Are you an aspiring nurse, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant struggling with IV therapy? Help is here! IV Therapy For Dummies tracks to a typical IV therapy course and gives you current, easy-to-follow guidance on everything you'll encounter in class, such as delivery methods, flow rates, legal issues, profession standards, and documentation.

IV Therapy For Dummies also discusses the necessary components of peripheral and central venous therapy, including access sites, equipment, preparation, maintenance, and the discontinuation of therapy. Plus, you'll get the 4-1-1 on the administration of IV medications, including special considerations for pediatric, elderly, and home care patients.

• Tracks to a typical IV Therapy course
• Provides current, comprehensive information in plain English

If you're enrolled in an IV Therapy course or a healthcare worker looking for a refresher on this important form of medical treatment, IV Therapy For Dummies has you covered.

Part I: Tapping Into IV Therapy 7

Chapter 1: Introducing IV Therapy: A Purpose-Driven Practice 9

Chapter 2: Keeping within the Letter of the Law 23

Chapter 3: Tools of the Trade 41

Part II: What’s Your Type? Components of IV Therapy 69

Chapter 4: Medications Made to Order: Pharmacological IV Therapy 71

Chapter 5: Beefi ng Up on Blood Component Therapy Basics 93

Chapter 6: Chemotherapy 101 107

Chapter 7: Maintaining Equilibrium with Fluids and Electrolytes 121

Chapter 8: Serving Up Parenteral Nutrition 157

Part III: Getting Down to IV Therapy Business 169

Chapter 9: Documenting Diligently: The Backbone of Infusion Therapy 171

Chapter 10: Calculation Central: Figuring Drug Dosages,

Drips, and Flow Rates 183

Chapter 11: Gravity, Pumps, and Syringes: The Many Ways to Deliver IV Therapy 193

Chapter 12: Going for the Hand or Arm: Peripheral IV Essentials 203

Chapter 13: The ABCs of the CVAD 227

Part IV: Administering IV Therapy 255

Chapter 14: Practical Pharmacological IV Administration 257

Chapter 15: Transfusing Blood Components 269

Chapter 16: Infusing Chemotherapy with Caution 283

Chapter 17: A Balancing Act: Administering Fluids and Electrolytes 297

Chapter 18: Making Every Calorie Count: Parenteral Nutrition 309

Part V: Considering Unique Populations 329

Chapter 19: A Little Dab’ll Do Ya: IV Therapy for Infants and Children 331

Chapter 20: When Aging Is an Issue: IV Therapy for the Elderly 343

Chapter 21: There’s No Place Like Home: IV Therapy for the Homebound Patient 355

Part VI: The Part of Tens 367

Chapter 22: Ten Things You Need to Know in IV Therapy 369

Chapter 23: Ten Tricks of the Trade for Starting IVs 373

Index 377