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Cannulation insertion experience before theatre

Posted By Cannula calamity

"Cannulation insertion experience before theatre"

About: Wonthaggi Hospital / Theatre

(as the patient),

I recently attended BCH for a routine colonoscopy.

In preparation for the surgery an attempt was made multiple times to insert a cannula into the back of my right hand. During this time,  I experienced a lot of pain and discomfort despite wriggling my toes and deep breathing. At no time did the nurse ask if I was OK or offer to apply local anaesthetic to the site. The cannula remained very uncomfortable until it was removed post surgery.

Not long after the cannula was removed, the site became very sore and the back of my hand started to bruise. When I woke the next morning my hand was still very sore and the bruising had darkened and had spread right across my hand. 3 days after surgery the soreness and bruising were finally starting to subside.

I have undergone many surgeries and I have never experienced such pain and discomfort. I now feel very anxious about being prepared for any future surgery.

Every other aspect of my recent surgical experience was exemplary. Except for this one nurse, the staff were courteous, very professional and highly skilled. 

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Responses

Response from Jan Child, CEO, Bass Coast Health 9 months ago
Jan Child
CEO,
Bass Coast Health

Submitted on 1/08/2023 at 8:15 PM
Published on Care Opinion on 2/08/2023 at 8:49 AM

picture of Jan Child

Dear Cannula calamity,

I am sorry that you had this experience with your cannulation. I would be very happy for you to text or a call me (0472846355) so that you can share your details. This will enable me to talk to the staff who were involved in your cannulation to understand the difficulties encountered.

As a nurse I can tell you that some cannulations are tricky and, in some cases, patients will experience irregular bruising near their IV site. This can be for a variety of reasons including a blown vein, age, medications, low platelet count, or some other reason that means the body has an inability to clot. It can also be cannulation technique, but I can say that the staff who cannulate in theatre are often our most experienced. I am happy to follow up to see if we can work out why if you are happy to share your details.

I hope your bruising is healing well - please let us know if it isn't. And can I say, if you ever need to come in for surgery again, or if you ever need to be cannulated again, please speak up if you are feeling anxious, or if you are in any pain. The last thing we want is for you to be fearful of another procedure when we can work with you positively and openly to help allay fears and identify the optimal cannulation effort for next time.

Thanks for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.

Kind Regards, Jan

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