Safe Injection Techniques

As the need for well-trained nurses increases, educators are driven to teach the skills necessary for success in the field. A firm understanding of how to give a safe injection is imperative, while understanding how each technique relates to the individual patient, paramount. It is important to revise nurses’ knowledge of the guiding principles for safe intradermal (ID), subcutaneous (SC), and intramuscular (IM) injections. The technique used should ensure the attainment of the appropriate dosage with the least possible harm (RCPCH, 2002). This will be dependent on several factors:

Type of drug or vaccine
Injection Site
Body Type
Needle length
The recipient
Administration technique
Correct drug/vaccine storage

Another important factor in safe injection technique, is injecting at the proper depth. Looking at insulin administration, if injected too deeply, the insulin might go into the muscle where it will be absorbed faster, not last as long, and potentially hurt the patient more since muscle injection often hurts more than a SC injection. On the other side, an insulin injection that is not given deeply enough could go into the skin, directly affecting the insulin’s onset and duration of action. It is important to understand that general guidelines for these injections are still dependant on the varying factors. While it is typically accepted that insulin injections are given at a 90° angle, you may need to inject at less than a 45° angle to avoid injecting a muscle, if the patient has less fat (BD Medical, 2007).

Another issue among schools of nursing surrounds the difficulty in getting students to properly landmark. While most of the newer textbooks will show the ventrogluteal as the preferred injection site, many instructors still feel the dorsogluteal is an acceptable alternative. As instructors continue to debate this issue, the nurses of tomorrow face inconsistency in this standard practice. When conducting Research and Development before creating a new Practi-Product™, issues such as this are always explored. From one-on-one interviews to online focus groups, it is essential to develop a consistent and accurate tool for student learning. If student competency is the ultimate goal, we as educators must put aside what we prefer, and strive for teaching the safest injection techniques that make sense for the fundamentals-level student.