IV Starter Pro - IV Insertion Skills - Basic to Advanced

Examine vein anatomy, a low pressure vessel with three layers—the tunica intima, tunica media, and tunica externa, including superficial and deeper veins with valves.

Identify safe iv sites in the arms, prioritizing antecubital fossa veins—cephalic, basilic, and median cubital—only after feeling or seeing a vein, and avoid mastectomy side or dialysis fistula without consent.

Master aseptic technique for IV insertion by practicing proper hand hygiene and using chlorhexidine alcohol or povidone iodine, scrubbing at least 30 seconds and letting it air dry.

Discover the iv catheter system and supplies, including catheter and needle components, gauge sizing (14–24), safety features, threading, color codes, and the basic iv start kit.

Identify IV insertion complications—blown veins, arterial sticks, nerve damage, catheter shear—and emphasize aseptic technique to prevent infection, embolism, and thrombus.

Learn to locate and palpate a vein for IV insertion, starting distal sites, applying a tourniquet properly, and using gentle touch and tapping to enhance visibility.

Gain practical strategies to locate difficult veins when starting IVs, using double tourniquets, cuff venostasis, warm compresses, ace wraps, vein finders, and ultrasound guidance.

Mark the insertion site using landmarks, alcohol pads, or a cap indentation to create a bullseye. Clean the site aseptically and set up sterile supplies for IV insertion.

Learn a detailed iv insertion walkthrough, featuring proper grip, vein stabilization, a shallow 10–15 degree entry, catheter advancement, blood flash, and securing the line with flush and dressing.

Master a safe IV removal technique: wipe the dressing, peel from a corner, avoid pressing during removal, place gauze, remove the catheter smoothly, then inspect the catheter and re-tape.

Retract the needle without removing it, redirect at a different angle, and stabilize the vein with your non-dominant hand before retrying an IV insertion.

Identify why threading fails—catheter not in vein, needle through vein, or valve obstruction—and address with floating, angle adjustment, and confirming vein placement with blood return.

Diagnose post-insertion iv issues: determine flush failure causes (infiltration, kink, valve, occlusion) and decide replacement or adjustment; manage leaks by tightening hubs or replacing the iv.

Intravenous placement in the antecubital by inserting a 20 gauge catheter, confirming flash, flushing with normal saline, and securing with tegaderm after checking blood return and patency.

Place a 22 gauge IV in the back of the forearm; palpate and stabilize the vein, insert at a low angle with a one-finger technique, and apply tegaderm.

Stabilize hand veins for iv placement with a shallow needle angle near a bifurcation above a valve. Advance the catheter, remove the needle, verify blood return, flush, and apply tegaderm.

Place a 22-gauge needle at the wrist, redirect to a superficial vein through a valve, thread the catheter, confirm venous access by blood return, flush, and apply tegaderm.

Identify ultrasound-guided IV supplies, including sterile gel packets, towels, and tegaderm for probe protection, and match catheter length to vein depth for deeper veins.

Arrange the patient and supplies, adjust bed height, and position the ultrasound screen for optimal line of sight to the arm, enabling precise ultrasound-guided IV insertion.

Learn to use a portable ultrasound with a linear probe to guide IV placement, adjusting depth to about 3 cm and tuning gain for clear vein images.

Master five ultrasound probe tips for successful IV insertion, including the C-shaped grip, non-dominant hand support, proper gel amount, full skin contact, and appropriate light pressure.

Learn how ultrasound displays a thin slice beneath the probe and how probe orientation and center marks guide you to center a vein for precise IV insertion.

Learn to use ultrasound to view vessels in short axis and long axis orientations, seeing the lumen and vessel walls and guiding IV catheter placement.

Identify suitable veins for IV insertion by assessing compressibility, depth under 1.5 cm, vein size relative to the catheter, and straightness for two centimeters, avoiding arteries, nerves, and bifurcations.

Direct the ultrasound-guided needle by translating screen visuals into precise adjustments to stay in the vein, retract and re-angle if needed, release the tourniquet to reduce hematoma, and monitor patency.

Learn ultrasound-guided iv insertion techniques, adjusting needle angles for vein depth, tracking the white dot on screen, and walking the needle tip to the vein.

Use straight to vein method with ultrasound to advance the needle to the vein tip and walk it in, an optional technique you should master after the walk down method.

Identify a straight vein in short axis. Use long axis method, rotate the probe 90 degrees, and guide the needle along the beam as the vein becomes two parallel lines.

Turn on color doppler to visualize veins and arteries with a color box, where vessels illuminate red or blue to indicate flow away from or toward the probe.

Demonstrates ultrasound-guided forearm iv insertion using the straight-to-vein method, identifying a shallow vein, visualizing the needle tip on screen, advancing the catheter, and securing the line with a Tegaderm dressing.

Demonstrates ultrasound-guided IV placement in the forearm, guiding a needle at a 20-30 degree angle, threading the catheter, and verifying blood return for a Tegaderm dressing.

Demonstrate ultrasound-guided IV insertion basics, locating a vein 1 cm deep, tracking the needle tip with probe movement, threading the catheter, and confirming blood return.