In early 2020, Jackie Lutes, BSN, RN, CPN, VA-BC™, took up her pen and wrote a children’s booklet to make getting a vascular access device easier for her pediatric patients.
While working the evening shifts on her vascular access team, Jackie Lutes noticed that not all pediatric patients had the same experience when it came to establishing a line. The patients who came in during the day had a child life specialist present during their procedure to explain the steps and give them comfort. With the child life specialists gone for the day, Lutes looked for ways to make the procedure more manageable for her evening patients.
She decided to get creative. Inspired by an article showing how one hospital used dogs to show children what their care would look like, Lutes fetched her camera, grabbed her dog, and got to work.
The result was a story about a dog getting an IV for the first time. Titled “Porter Gets an IV,” the booklet stars Lutes’s pup, Porter, garbed in a patient gown and, in later pages, fixed with the device.
Easing procedure anxiety and helping families bond
The book is an instant de-stressor, Lutes said. It eases the tension for the children to see the process laid out clearly. Add a dog who is dressed just like them, and the process goes from scary and intimidating, to silly and approachable.
She said some patients break into big smiles and tell stories about their dog at home.
“When they flip through the book, they think that maybe this isn’t so bad,” she said.
“Sometimes people are really quick to want to just get the IV in, not really take the time for all the little things…We’re trying to make it a more positive experience every single time a kid gets an IV start.”
Lutes wanted the book to not only soothe nerves but to be educational too. Lutes worked with a child life specialist in her institution to tackle the questions that most kids have when getting a device for the first time.
“Kids want to know everything,” Lutes said. “Like ‘why are you wearing those gloves,’ ‘what are you going to do with that wipe,’ or ‘how does it go in my arm?’”
The book is fitted in a binder with each page laminated for easy disinfection. Tucked into the inside pocket is a kit filled with the parts of an IV, so tactile learners can feel the catheter before the procedure starts.
The binder is also big enough to act as a shield between the patient and the device.
“It’s a big enough book where you can hold it off to the side if the kid doesn’t want to watch the poke.”
The seemingly small booklet made a huge difference. Parents can even benefit from the book by reading it with their child as the team prepares for the procedure.
“It was a bonding moment for the parent and the kid,” Lutes described. “Sometimes it’s easier for the kid to hear things from their parent versus strangers who they know are going to poke them. They’ve gotten pokes in the past—it hurts.”
Helping people on and off the page
Porter was no worse for the wear after his modeling gig. In fact, Lutes said her dog is so easy-going, that the hardest part about taking the pictures for the booklet was making sure he didn’t fall asleep.
“I did have to give him some cheese because that’s his favorite treat,” she laughed.
Porter is now a therapy dog, thanks to Lutes’s training, and the two use his laid-back attitude to visit those who need them. The duo currently visits nursing homes with their free time. They also volunteer with a therapy group called Canine Inspired Change, where therapy dogs visit schools and other organizations to help community members with trauma, social struggles, and isolation.
After two years of residing in the office of the vascular access team, Lutes believes it is time for the story to spread its wings. She is currently working with the vascular access council and the child life department to duplicate the book. That way, children throughout the institution – inpatient or outpatient – can feel comfortable with their care.
“Sometimes people are really quick to want to just get the IV in, not really take the time for all the little things,” Lutes said. “We’re trying to make it a more positive experience every single time a kid gets an IV start.”
You can get Porter Gets an IV for your patients free here, available in four languages. Many thanks to Jackie Lutes and the team at Children’s Minnesota for sharing this story with other clinicians and patients in need!
