Subcutaneous Injection Administration
Under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), Disability Support Workers may need to support you with administering subcutaneous injections if you cannot self-administer yourself.
What is a Subcutaneous Injection?
Subcutaneous injections are used to give medication into the fatty tissue layer between the muscle and the skin. The subcutaneous tissue has a limited blood supply, so the drug is absorbed more slowly than if inserted intravenously.
This type of injection administration route may be useful for medicines such as insulin, heparin and morphine that need constant absorption.
In addition, subcutaneous injections are less expensive, simpler and may be the only effective and reliable method of administering specific medications in the comfort of your home.
The needles utilised must typically be 16mm long and 25 to 27 gauge.
What Type of Medicines can be Administered Subcutaneously?
Medicines that can be given through this route are in small doses of less than 2 mls. These medications require to be administered rapidly and daily or in your home, such as insulin, anticoagulant medications, fertility medicines, pain relief medication and those that stop nausea and vomiting.
How to give subcutaneous injections?
It is essential to keep in mind that different individuals have varying levels of subcutaneous fat, so you will need to be examined before the carer proceeds with the injection.
Lifting the skin fold can help separate the subcutaneous from the muscle below, which needs to be avoided. This is achieved by lifting a 5 cm fold of skin with your non-dominant hand.
The support worker will place the syringe at a 45 to 90-degree angle to your skin or follow product info for specific guidelines for each medication. Inject the needle utilising a quick, dart-like technique, hold the barrel of the syringe firmly and inject the contents for 10 to 30 seconds. With the plunger still down, wait 10 seconds, then remove the needle and instantly get rid used needle and syringe into a sharps box.
How can Truworth Care assist
Subcutaneous injection is a requirement of the NDIS Practice Standards under the High Strength Daily Personal Activities Module. Under these standards, Truworth Care as an NDIS service provider must meet the following requirements:.
Engage you in evaluating and advancing a subcutaneous injection strategy that includes dosage measurement and calculation. This strategy recognises possible risks, occurrences and emergencies. It describes what actions must be taken to manage these scenarios, including the escalation of care if required.
Ensure that your health status is evaluated regularly with your consent.
Provide you with a written prescription or phone order prescribing the medication that will be administered subcutaneously. This prescription needs to be recorded.
Validate your identity through 3 identifiers and verify the need for subcutaneous injections.
Follow the ’13 Rights of medication administration.
Determine and calculate the medication dose. If being carried out by a support worker, they need to be monitored and inspected by a clinician.
Understand the effect of variables such as site area and website rotation.
Understand and identify the symptoms of an adverse event to medication and how to respond.
Identify the symptoms of overdose and withdrawal.
Understand the risks associated with subcutaneous injections and control approaches to counter these dangers.
Dispose of needles and sharps securely and safely.
Preserve medication records.
Follow hygiene and infection control procedures.
Understand the underlying conditions you have. (e.g. diabetes).
Rotate the injection sites to permit each location to heal if you require regular injections.
Assist with administering predosed and variable dose medication injections.
Obtain a medication plan from your GP or health practitioner with recommendations on medication requirements, dose calculation when required, injecting procedure, and what to do in the event of an incident or emergency.
Deploy staff with knowledge of administration of injections by pens and pumps, understand different injection methods and related equipment, medication checking and recording requirements, and the impact of variables that affect take up such as site location and rotation related to specific medication, timing, safe sharp disposal, signs of adverse reactions and action required including common symptoms of overdose and withdrawal, common risks of injecting and related control methods and quality check protocols when calculating and delivering a variable dose.
Confirm your details and need for injection.
Follow personal hygiene and infection control procedures
and safe injecting procedures using pumps and pens containing pre-measured doses.
Monitor for any adverse reactions
Maintain records.
Supervise Disability Support Workers when variable doses of medication are required to calculate and draw up as stipulated in the care plan before administering the injection.
Ensure that support workers responsible for administering high-risk medications understand the drug’s purpose and have received training on the awareness of the condition and management.
Assist with the administration of prefilled and variable injection if you have difficulties in self-administering
Deploy staff who are familiar with the administration of injections using hand-power devices and needles, understand various injection methods and appropriate equipment, medication checking and recording needs, the impact of variables that affect take-up, such as site and rotation with regard to a particular medication, timing, etc., safe sharp disposal, signs of adverse effects and action required”, including anaphylaxis.
Confirm your identification and need for injection.
Follow personal hygiene and infection prevention procedures.
Monitor for adverse side effects.
Supervise Disability Support Workers when variable dosages are required to administer medication and to draw up dose requirements in accordance with restrictions outlined by the care plan.
Make sure support staff who are in charge of administering high-risk medications have a comprehension of the purpose of that medication. For example, clinical staff members who administer insulin injections require comprehensive training and specialist instruction on the management of diabetes.