patient Archives - Tammie's Take~

Advice For Helping A Loved One In Need

Reviews · January 21, 2019

It could be anything from an illness to financial troubles to having an elderly parent, and there may come a time when a loved one requires your help. These types of situations aren’t always easy to handle and can be a challenge for all parties involved.

Use the following advice for guidance on how you can best support and be there for a loved one in need. Remember to take care of yourself throughout the process so you don’t become overwhelmed or stressed out and end up taking on the other person’s problems. Keep in mind that you’re there as a helping hand and to listen and propose a recommended plan of action for moving forward.

Educate Yourself

Your first step in being able to help a loved one in need is to educate yourself about what’s going on with them. For instance, if the person is addicted to pain medication or heroin, then you’ll want to take the time to learn about this addiction and treatment options. Have a conversation with your loved one and try to get to the bottom of what they’re dealing with before jumping to any conclusions.

Offer Your Time & Attention

One of the best ways to help a loved one in need is to simply be there for them. Offer your time and attention and listen carefully to what they’re willing to share with you. All they may need and want in the moment is to know someone else cares and is there for them. Let them know you’re a source of support and ask them what you can be doing that’s going to help them get to a better place.

Brainstorm Solutions

You can also help a loved one in need by taking the time to brainstorm solutions as to how to best deal with what they’re going through. Open up the dialogue so that you’re both involved in the process of figuring out how to proceed and you aren’t simply preaching your opinion at them. Ask for their input and make a list of pros and cons for the ideas you each come up with.

Establish Boundaries

What you don’t want to happen is that you end up consuming yourself with your loved one’s troubles or dilemma. It’s important to be there for them but you also want to establish boundaries in the relationship early on. You have other obligations and responsibilities to attend to and might not have the time to always be by their side. Maintain your self-care routine and avoid letting yourself get swept up in the problem and neglecting yourself in the process.

Remain Patient

You’ll want to commit to staying patient both with yourself, your loved one and the situation in your case. Helping a loved one in need may be a bigger job than you originally planned for and there may not be a quick fix. Accept that some days might be better than others so try not to take the ups and downs personally.

Requisite Safety Precautions Every Phlebotomists Should Take

Reviews · May 16, 2018

One of the first things phlebotomists learn while practicing their trade is the fact that the sight of blood should not astonish one. Those in the inner circles of the health profession consider phlebotomists as modern-day vampires whose trade appertains with everything blood-related.

They ply their trade in doctors’ offices, in hospitals and clinics. Given the sensitive nature of blood, phlebotomists have to take necessary precautions in order to comply with the necessary codes of conduct.

Patient-centric Precautions

When it comes to the sanctity of blood in hospitals, phlebotomists the ones charged with the responsibility of ensuring that all necessary protocols are complied with in order to protect patients.

Normally, phlebotomists first check their records to ascertain if patients have certain health conditions that limit the body regions blood can be drawn from. The next step is ascertaining that the patient is currently not under a form of medication that can prevent blood from clotting.

Once a patient is in the clear, the phlebotomist then proceeds to cleanse and sterilize the equipment going to be used for the operation. Washing hands and the donning of gloves is another important step necessary to ensure that the best conditions possible are facilitated. Other precautions include steps taken to ensure that patients don’t actually bleed under the skin and then dressing up the patient’s wound. To get the low-down on the nature of the phlebotomy profession, check out Phlebotomy Schools.

Phlebotomist-centric Precautions

There are numerous diseases like HIV and hepatitis that are easily transmitted by a needlestick, thus, phlebotomists need to take sufficient precautions in order to protect themselves from contamination.

Importantly, thanks to the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act of 2001, safety needles nowadays come with built-in features to prevent accidental needle pricks from occurring. According to the College of American Pathologists, the precautions remain upheld as long as phlebotomists activate the safety devices.

Rules effected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommend that phlebotomists take on an active role in the testing of safety equipment and deciding on which products they have absolute faith when it comes to ease of operation.

Labeling

In the medical fraternity, labels are essential since they help in ensuring that patients receive the right kind of blood that can’t harm their medical state of being. In addition, labeling helps ensure that patients on medication are able to receive the right kind of treatment necessary. If labeling did not exist, a lot of patients’ blood would go to waste.

Disposal

While drawing of blood is the main issue for phlebotomists, the job is never complete until the disposal is complete. The final precautionary act involves the phlebotomist disposal of the blood safely.

Safe disposal involves throwing all the remnant medical waste from the phlebotomy procedure in a bin. Items like bandages, syringes, gauzes, bandages, tourniquets are probable biohazards that need a lot of caution when handling.

The disposal bin should be a puncture-resistant container. As a rule of thumb, the disposal bin should be emptied regularly in order to lower the probability of blood-borne diseases emerging from a needle stick.