New Technology is Illuminating

Campbell County Memorial Hospital Maternal Child Nurse Amy Ashbeck watched as the veins in her hand glowed red when the new Accuvein device was passed over them. Campbell County Health is now using the new tool for vein visualization in the Lab, Emergency Department, Heptner Cancer Center and Maternal Child units. Because it uses infrared light to project the exact location of veins beneath the surface of the skin, Accuvein can help make a blood draw or an IV placement easier and less painful for patients of all ages.

The device is about the size of a TV remote and is already used at more than 3,000 other healthcare facilities in the US and can improve the success rate of getting a blood draw or IV insertion on the first try by as much as 350%. Because a blood draw or IV placement is one of the most common medical procedures for patients in the hospital, it’s a great tool to help improve their experience.

“We use it when we have to start an IV on a baby in our Level II nursery,” said Amy, a certified registered nurse and the Clinical Educator for the Level II nursery at CCMH. “Babies, especially newborns, have very small veins, and we really want to get an IV done right the first time for the sake of both the baby and the mom.”

Accuvein also works well for people who have veins that are deep, difficult to find, or for cancer patients whose veins have been affected by chemotherapy.

“It’s really cool technology that makes us more effective at our jobs”, says Amy. “The faster the nurse or technologist can insert an IV, the faster the patient can get the medication they need to start feeling better.”