The Importance of Good Technique in Phlebotomy

Phlebotomy is one of the most common and prevalent specialized healthcare skills out there. Yet it seems to be the least amount of time focused on during our schooling and training. For the most part, it can be a very simple skill - when everything goes right. But, especially in the hospital setting, there are a plethora of other variables that healthcare professionals have to deal with. These variables can include, but are not limited to:

• Hard sticks (patients who may be severely dehydrated, have thin or fragile veins, difficult to see or palpate veins, etc) 
• Combative patients 
• High stress and high acuity scenarios where the professional is rushed due to urgency
• Challenging environment (extremely cold rooms that cause veins to be less prominent, chaos or lost of individuals in the room due to a high acuity situation, etc)
• Limited resources (the equipment may be limited to what is available or offered in that facility, potentially not always being the most ideal equipment for the situation)
• ETC

Therefore, this skill can become complicated or difficult very quickly. Having a good technique and a solid infrastructure for this skill is essential for success in these challenging situations. But sadly, many times healthcare professionals are not being given the opportunity to develop a solid infrastructure and good techniques around these skills. As discussed in previous posts, a drastic need for more healthcare professionals, a lack of training and education around the skill sets, and the challenges of COVID have led to this uphill battle we are dealing with. 

The domino effect for lack of good technique can look like:

• Pain and traumatizing experiences for our patients (making it only more difficult for the next healthcare professional that may have to perform this procedure on this individual)
• Lack of trust between patient and care providers
• Poor Patient-Provider Relationship
• Increase risk for inaccurate results (due to lyses or other complications while drawing blood) 
• Inefficient workflow (due to these procedures taking longer than normal)
• Increase burnout of healthcare professionals (due to lack of confidence and ability in these skills to successful do their jobs)
• Poor patient retention rates with their providers
• Poor healthcare professional retention rates

Whereas good technique can result in:

• Faster and more efficient care
• Minimal pain for our patients and improved patient experience 
• Better results and less errors for laboratory readings 
• Less burnout for our healthcare providers (solid skills lead to more confidence and less stress around the ability to successful do their job)
• Greater retention rates for healthcare professionals 
• Greater retention rates for patients with their care providers 
• Improved Patient-Provider Relationship
• Etc

As an industry, I believe it to be crucial for us to prioritize the solutions for this challenge and do so in a unified way, such as:

• Standardizing skills development in training programs and schools
• Ensuring the confidence and competency of certain skills prior to starting your first role 
• More opportunities for professionals to practice their skills and improve 
• More options for training and skill improvement 
• Online Courses 
• In-Person Training
• Coaching (in-person or virtual)
• Lecture Series 
• Etc

I have no doubt this challenge can be overcome easily, but it will require further acknowledgement of the challenge and desire of implementing these solutions - for not only the benefit of our healthcare professionals, but most importantly our patients.