How to Administer IV Meds During Hemodialysis

Dialysis is used for people with non-functional kidneys to remove waste products from their body. Basically, a catheter is inserted into a patient as an access port. The patient's blood will then flow into an artificial kidney called the dialyzer where blood is being filtered and cleaned. Administering intravenous medication may also be done through the dialysis catheter when other peripheral venous sites are not available.

Things You'll Need

• Gloves
• Alcohol pads
• Sterile 10cc syringe
• IV medication bag with attached tubing
• Portable bio hazard red container
• Normal Saline solution
• Heparin

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Instructions

• 1

  Wash your hands thoroughly with antibacterial soap and water for at least 15 seconds then don gloves.

• 2

  Choose a port where you want to administer your intravenous medication. Open alcohol pad. Hold the port with one hand using your thumb and pointer finger then use your other hand to wipe the port with the alcohol pad. Never lay the port down during the entire process because doing so will contaminate the port from any material that it comes contact with.

• 3

  Aspirate 10cc of blood

  Connect the syringe to the port. Aspirate 10ml of blood and discard needle in the portable red bio hazard container.

• 4

  Clean the port with alcohol pad and attach the IV tubing to the port. Set the IV pump to the desired infusion rate.

• 5

  Disconnect the tubing when the IV medication bag is done infusing. Flush the catheter with 10cc of normal saline solution and heparin to keep the IV line open.