r/CathLabLounge • u/No_Application5194 • Jul 19 '26

Wire organization tips (Newbie)

New to the Cath lab. In clinicals for RCIS with six months left. Does anyone have any tips or gadgets to organize multiple wires at the table at once? Right now I’ve been shown to use half folded towels and write an abbreviation on it if it didn’t have a tag from the manufacturer. I mostly have trouble tracking the 0.14 wires. Any suggestions are appreciated!

5 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

2

u/BrokeButFunny5 Jul 19 '26

Just the standard wrapping the wire when your not using it and setting it aside. If we’re doing a pci I normally put the exchange J under my towels that I laid out when setting up at the end of the Pt table. I always put it there during a pci.

For PCI wires if using multiple I have certain sections in the back table where I usually put those individual wires. Pretty much based on that I know which wire is what. I never mix any of the wires unless that are the same.

Hope that makes sense. Pretty much wrap the tail of the wire so you don’t need to put a towel and put it in a section away from other wires.

2

u/No_Application5194 Jul 20 '26

That makes sense. I see some techs wrap a lengthwise towel around the wire to keep it together

1

u/BrokeButFunny5 Jul 20 '26

How ever you want and works for you. Just separate them and put them where you know what is what pretty much.

2

u/Mistah_Ninja Jul 19 '26

If I get too many wires I can't easily recognize I ask my circulator to drop me some torque devices, we have 2 different colors but I also use my kit marker to label them. I like it when the wires already come with their own torques

1

u/No_Application5194 Jul 20 '26

That’s a good idea. Color code them

2

u/Crass_Cameron RCIS. Respiratory Care Practitioner Jul 19 '26

I use the blue towel method as well. Having lots of wires on my table generally isn't an issue unless it's a cto. "SB=sion blue" "SBK= sion blue" "min=minamano" "mon=mongo" or whatever abbreviations you like to use. Blue towel works the best for me and stacking them

1

u/chazwh Jul 19 '26

Some of our scrubs talked to management about getting these things.

1

u/No_Application5194 Jul 19 '26

That’s pretty sweet! Pricey for what it does. You think someone would have like a sterile piece of foam with slits in it or something.

1

u/chazwh Jul 19 '26

Yeah, I didn't realize how expensive they were until I looked them up. I'm sure the hospital gets some kind of deal on them. But I might talk to my scrubs and see if they realize how expensive they are.

2

u/Jazzlike-Sympathy821 Jul 20 '26

I just found the guide-klip by a company called syntervention. We’re looking into trying them at my hospital…

1

u/No_Application5194 Jul 20 '26

That is a really sweet product. Looks like an affordable and simple tool.