What is it called when you touch or feel a venipuncture site?
Palpate
What is the difference between arteries and veins.
Arteries are muscular, and they pulse with the heart. They carry oxygen rich blood away from the heart. Veins are elastic, they carry deoxygentated blood back to the heart.
What is the additive in the light blue tube?
Sodium citrate, Na citrate
What is done with the tubes after performing your blood draw?
They are labeled time date and initial, and sent to the lab with the test requisition.
When drawing blood cultures, which tube should be draw first? Aerobic, or Anaerobic? Which Tube should be drawn if you can only obtain one blood culture?
Aerobic
Where should you draw if a patient has had a double mastectomy?
Ask the patient where to draw blood from, and confirm with the doctor. You may have to draw from a foot, or draw without a tourniquet.
What is the most critical error a phlebotomist can make?
Misidentify the patients specimen, or not identify the patient.