Medical Assistant Prep / Unit 16 MAS 397 review, 2 to 3 minutes
One Injection, Done Right
The idea
This case is constructed for this course. It follows a medical assistant through one ordered intramuscular vaccine injection, in a state and practice where she is trained and permitted to give it.
In practice
The provider orders a vaccine for an adult patient, to be given intramuscularly. The medical assistant confirms that giving it is within her role in this practice. She checks the order: the vaccine, the route and the patient. In the exam room, she confirms his name and date of birth against the order, and asks about allergies and past reactions to vaccines. He has none. She checks the label against the order when she picks up the vial and again as she prepares the vaccine. She asks him to remove his arm from his sleeve. Seeing the whole upper arm, she locates the bony point at the top of the shoulder and the center of the deltoid muscle about two inches below it. She cleans her hands, puts on gloves and cleans the site. Holding the syringe like a dart, she inserts the needle quickly at ninety degrees and injects. She withdraws at the same angle, activates the safety device, and drops the syringe straight into the sharps container without recapping. She checks the label once more before discarding the empty vial. She documents the vaccine, the route, the site, the time and her name. Then she asks him to wait for the period the practice requires, and she checks on him before he leaves.
Where people slip
Nothing in this injection was rushed or improvised. The checks before it, the landmarks, and the watching afterward were each part of the procedure. Skipping the wait, or documenting later, are the steps most easily dropped on a busy day, and they are the steps that catch a reaction or prevent a double dose.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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