Home IV therapy for some is much more comfortable than continuing treatment as a hospital inpatient. However, it's not without its own set of frustrations and difficulties. Many cystic fibrosis patients are well-seasoned professionals when it comes to managing the schedule of home IV therapy; for the newly diagnosed or parents who are learning the home IV routine for the first time, it can all be a bit overwhelming. This article is written with the first-timers in mind in hopes that it will allay your fears and give you the confidence you need to cope with this new aspect of managing this aspect of life with cystic fibrosis.Click here to read the full article which includes information about:
2 comments:
Excellent article with great information. I think that home IV's are something that is often overlooked. In the CF community there is a lot of talk about hospitalizations, but not much discussion about what happens after discharge.
When i first started doing home IV's my hospital provided me with a teaching class on how to do them prior to my discharge. That helped to reduce my worry about home IV's. Not sure if all hospitals do this, but if its available, it is certainly something worth doing. I found that after doing them for about a week at home I was pretty comfortable with IV's. Now I am able to literally do them in my sleep, I draw my own labs and my wife does my dressing changes. So outside of the home infusion company delivering drug and supplies I am pretty self sufficient.
You bring up an interesting point about teamwork when you describe how you and your wife work together to do the infusions. I've found that like with so many other aspects of CF, having a supportive team (spouse, parents or whomever) can really take a lot of the anxiety out of things like infusions.
I'm quite self-sufficient as well. Have been for years. :)
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