CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — As a critical-care registered nurse for more than 30 years, Bob Rynecki, 63, of Chambersburg, spent much of his time administering intravenous lines, or IVs.
Now retired, and his own son entering the same profession, Rynecki wanted to pass on what he learned in “The Art of the IV Start: Common Techniques and Tricks of the Trade for Establishing Successful Peripheral Intravenous Line.”
“Many health care professionals have difficulty initiating an intravenous line on patients when needed. ‘The Art of the IV Start,’ provides the techniques and fine details needed to be successful at this essential skill, in addition to boosting the confidence of the provider,” Rynecki wrote.
What inspired you to write this guide?
Every one of us will potentially need an intravenous line (IV) at some point in our lives. A properly placed IV is extremely essential in medicine, as it is the route by which we cure our patients by providing fluid, antibiotics, blood, pain medicine, etc., to them.
It is also estimated that 85 percent to 90 percent of all patients entering the hospital will need an IV.
Over my 30-plus-year career in the medical field, I noticed a significant decline in the nurse’s skill level for this intervention.
I gained the reputation from my colleagues as the “go-to” person for starting IVs (in my hospital) and helped teach many nurses throughout the hospital these techniques. They, in turn, became very successful at starting IVs themselves.
Our oldest son is a critical-care registered nurse, and as I knew I would soon be retiring, I decided to write down these techniques and, more importantly, the rationale behind them, for him to use during his career.
One thing led to another and eventually I got the idea to put my thoughts into a book.
What helped you learn the special skills you present?
I’ve had many very good mentors in the past — both nurses and paramedics — and I took away many little pieces of knowledge from each of them along the way.
I then started to put these pieces together for what worked for me. But at one point in my career, I began to fail and questioned why.
Through perseverance and determination, I began to find other little techniques and refinements that worked and these increased my success rate.
My book presents all of these fine little details and techniques to help make the nurse/paramedic successful on the first needle stick. You have to learn how to look and for what to look.
Can you tell us of a motto or mantra by which you operate when inserting an IV?
My motto is “One and done.” That is the only way to do this.
Too many times I have seen where patients have been stuck multiple times when the provider failed in her or his attempts. I would then be called and usually get an IV on the patient.
By not doing it right the first time and having to stick the patient multiple times, this puts the patient at risk for infection and other complications, not to mention the pain involved with being stuck by a needle.
The goal is to do it right on the first stick to avoid any delay in treatment, avoid complications, and avoid any increased pain and fear by the patient. This is a difficult task, especially when a patient has difficult veins. Sometimes even the best person misses, but “one and done” is always the goal.
What is your mission with this book?
My mission with this book is to continue contributing to the nursing/EMS professions, even though I just recently retired.
My mission is also to encourage and train nurses, doctors, paramedics, radiology techs and anyone else who starts IVs, and to help build their confidence. I have many testimonials from nurses who have increased their IV skills by following the methods in my book. They are very good at what they do.
Also, nationwide, IV technique is not taught in many schools today and nurses learn with on-the-job training. Why reinvent the wheel? All the needed details to be successful are now in one place.
What was the process you went through in creating this guide?
My process is basically presenting the information in a clear, informative format to make learning easy.
I used to teach at Penn State Mont Alto and would tell stories to enhance a point I was trying to make.
I have included personal stories in “The Art of the IV Start” to bring the point home and make it more understandable and enjoyable to the reader.
What is one thing you hope readers will take away from this book?
Confidence! I want readers to know that they are better than they think they are and that they can do this.
Initiating an IV is serious business because you are invading a patient’s bloodstream, and this technique needs to be done right the first time.
But you have to learn the right way.
I believe everyone can become good at what they do if they perform the techniques presented in my book properly. Our patients deserve it.
How much does the book cost?
The book is published by Archway Publishing, costs $8.99 in paperback or $3.99 for Kindle or e-book.
For more information, go to www.theartoftheivstart.com, or email trynecki@comcast.net
Where can readers purchase “The Art of the IV Start?”
Through the publisher at https://bookstore.Archwaypublishing.com. Also through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Kindle.
I am also available to come and speak to student nurses, hospitals, etc., to spread the word about proper IV technique. Students can purchase an autographed copy of my book after I make a presentation.
Sophie Abeles, will be a senior this fall at Saint James School.
by Mike Rubin http://www.emsworld.com
Is there a task more fundamental and, at times, more frustrating to paramedics than establishing IVs? I don’t think so. The Art of the IV Start, by RN and former medic Bob Rynecki, is a noteworthy attempt to address mechanical and psychological issues associated with this most basic ALS skill. If you’ve endured streaks of not being able to cannulate veins the width of a cannoli or can’t get flashback from anything narrower than a garden hose, this book is worth reading.
