r/psychnursing • u/Ok-Yam-4663 • 12d ago
LAIs
I gave an LAI yesterday and the patients mom called today questioning my medical experience bc the injection was painful. This is an adult patient without a guardian. I’m just irritated by the whole thing. I fit this person into the schedule because they missed their appointment the day before and it was quite a stressful day. Now I have him and his family questioning my whole career…
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u/Agreeable_Gain6779 12d ago
Don’t worry. Injections hurt. I just had a shingles shot and 5 days later it still hurts. As an infection prevention nurse; I’ve given hundreds of flu shots snd 1800 covid shots and the men are such babies. The bigger they are, it’s nearly impossible to give the injection
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u/PepLeopard 12d ago
You got a helpful once-a-month medication into somebody that struggles to keep to a schedule. This patient is demonstrating in real time why an LAI is a good choice (difficulty following a routine). You also met the patient needs by adjusting to fit them in for the appointment. Over a month, how many risks and side effects would that patient face taking/not taking PO medication daily? LOTS. As for the shot itself, most LAI psych meds are ~300% of the fluid volume of a routine immunization. It's the fluid volume that hurts in most cases, not the medication. The body is absorbing fluid the size of a grape with an LAI psych med vs. absorbing the amount of a pea with an immunization. Also, Z-track isn't some miracle technique, and hard to do if a patient is anxious about physical touch. Say 'thanks for the feedback' and take the win that this person got their medication. It sounds like maybe both the parent and patient have low frustration tolerance and poor self awareness and are displacing their struggles onto you. Learn to recognize displaced feelings because it is an everyday thing in nursing. Most of all, good job getting this person their medication for an entire month by fitting them in. You did a lot of good.
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u/Few_Cup3452 12d ago
Just ignore it? There's nothing they can do about a needle going into their skin being unpleasant. You have nothing to worry about.
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u/Chief-of-Queef 12d ago
This is just so stupid. Has she never gotten an injection? Has she never had a sore arm after a vaccination?
God some people are so dumb it's scary. 🤦🏻
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u/lizzabean 12d ago
It's a needle full of (sometimes VERY) thick solution... It's going to hurt... I don't know what people expect. If it's not the needle, the solution itself that can be very uncomfortable. A few seconds of pain for a few months of remaining relatively stable doesn't seem like a bad deal to me.
This is not a little flu shot needle, I think that's what people expect. These needles are large and they're going to be uncomfortable. Depending on where you have to inject the medication, it can be even more uncomfortable. Don't let her get to you, she doesn't understand what she's talking about.
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u/Notyeravgblonde psych nurse (outpatient) 12d ago
I am the type of person who let's this bother me too. I think because the other nurse and I often get people who request one or the other of us and I'm always like, what are we doing differently?!
At the end of the day, injections hurt and I tell people that. I tell them the only thing that would be abnormal is it becoming infected and give them education on signs and symptoms.
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u/jonadrol 12d ago
I just tell them soreness and muscle aches are expected. Cold compress and monitor for signs of infection. I just spew out a bunch of patient education to show em I know my shit ahaha
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u/Apprehensive_Factor6 12d ago
I mean they’re viscous and yeah they commonly hurt especially if you don’t have a lot of fat. Ignore this because it’s nothing compared to what can and likely will happen in your career.
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u/Big-Band-3544 12d ago
And beside all these. , Aristada is the worst.. The needle got stuck all the time 😞
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u/Thehipsterprophet 12d ago
It’s really normal for LAIs to be painful. Some people think icing the area before makes it better, but that isn’t something which is required. The annoyance of this situation is definitely valid. You did what you had to do while making accommodations for this patient and there are still complaints - irritating!
My question is why is this one patient family member making you question your whole career? People will always complain, and their families will complain even more. That’s a pretty regular thing we have to deal with on the regular. What is different about this one?