Forum topic

2 posts / 0 new
Last post
fentanylius
Code blue during Picc line placement

I like to share this experience.

I had a 65 years old patient in ICU. Pt was admitted with vfib a day before, but was "stable" at this time with a heart rate by 130. Pt is a renal failure pat. with old A-V shunts bilateral. No venous access, ER physician, procedure team and IR MD gave up to place anything. I placed a Picc in this pat. a month ago but someone pulled it because this patient don't need a access, right! Anyway, I found in his way upper arm my basilic and happily got the wire in. During my forward motion with my wire the patient started to roll his eyes and in the first moment I thought he get a seizure. My first look at the monitor shows that he was back in V Fib and I must have tickled his unstable heart. I pulled my wire out, called the code, removed my field and with a high pregnant RT at the bedside I could start CPR. Patient survived but I was done with doing a PICC on him. Now I get teased in ICU everytime they have a code, all I can say: Wasn't me!

Anyone with the same experience out there?

Andre

RCRMC Moreno Valley

Robyn Whitlock ...
We don't pass the wire up
We don't pass the wire up into the chest.  There really is no need to pass the wire that far if you are just using the wire to get the introducer sheath in place.  I would be interested to hear what others are doing.

Robyn Whitlock RN, MSN, CRNI

Log in or register to post comments