This patient is laying in lateral recumbency, but the patient can also be in sternal recumbency. Generously clip the area around the cephalic vein to remove all the fur. Locate the cephalic vein either by sight or palpation. When placing the catheter, it is important to start as distally as possible in case you face difficulty placing the catheter and need to move higher on the leg. Disinfect the clipped area using the cleaning solution. The first wipe should always be with alcohol, the 2nd wipe should be with chlorhexidine and the 3rd wipe should always be alcohol. Insert the catheter into the skin with the bevel side up. Advance the catheter into the place where you visualized or palpated the vein. Once you receive blood back into the hub of the catheter, slowly feed the catheter off the stylet and into the vein. …show more content…
Ensure that blood is still backing up into the hub of the catheter. If it is, gently advance the catheter and stylet a little more into the vein and try again to feed the catheter into the vein. If no blood is backing up into the hub, pull the catheter and stylet out until you see blood flow into the hub. Attempt to feed the catheter off the stylet again. Screw on the cap or the t set. Tape the catheter in place using 1-in porous hospital grade tape. This is one of several ways to properly secure a catheter. Using another method, such as bandaging material, is fine as long as it is safe and comfortable for the patient and secures the IV catheter firmly in place. It is important to test and flush the catheter after