The Importance of Good Venipuncture

This is a short, but vital, post. If you’re anything like me, you’ve had more than your lifetime’s share of needle sticks. Chronic pain / illness patients get a lot of blood drawn, right? Well, I’ve been getting blood drawn at my family practice doc’s office for the last few years. But the last time one of their nurses drew my blood, I had a 3″ x 2″ bruise AND a huge lump! If that wasn’t enough, I actually had a needle scratch near the site too. Clearly, this nurse was NOT skilled at venipuncture. And the lump? It was there because she not only punctured my vein as she entered, but then kept on going and punctured the other side of the vein too.

This was of course completely unacceptable. I called the doc’s office to let them know (kindly) that this particular nurse had been sorely lacking in skills. And remind them that it’s especially unacceptable on a patient who is immunosuppressed. They did apologize, and suggested that I request a different nurse the next time. Yup … you bet!

Instead, I decided to do what I had done some years ago. I decided to make friends with some people who do nothing but venipuncture – at a local diagnostic lab location. I chose Quest Diagnostics because they had been processing the blood from the doctor anyway. So I assumed (rightly) that my health insurance would cover that lab. And let me tell you, this was the right choice!

The lab tech was fantastic! Friendly, professional, no waiting, and most of all … really, really skilled at venipuncture. The bruise is only the size of a pencil eraser, if that! Minimal pain and maximum patient satisfaction. Definitely worth the switch!