[Lisa Z]

The technician who put my PICC line in at the NIH was just wonderful. I forget his name, but he was just great and made me feel so comfortable. I never had anything like that done before, and was, of course, nervous about it. But he had a great sense of humor which made me relaxed and he explained everything ahead of time. Like many of the wonderful employees there, he is of a foregin nationality.... maybe Latino, South American, or somewhere else; so if you get him, you're all set!!! Also, I love the guy I get down in Phlebotomy. He is from the West Indies. He is wonderful too! Always says when he puts your bands on your wrist "These are not gold or silver, but they are for you health, and that is worth more than anything"!.

the PICC line will dangle out of you upper arm. It will have 2 ports coming out of it, just in case one gets clogged up. That happens now and then and they will flush it out, but having 2 just makes it easier. They will either wrap in in that bandage like you get after your blood work in Phlebotomy, like a colored ace bandage, or in a white fabric type thing that basically keeps everything close to your arm. They will give you these clear, protective bandages to put over your arm, at the site of you picc line, that will stick onto your arm and cover the entire area, for when you shower.

I had some redness at the site of my PICC line for a bit, but never enough of a concern for them to take it out and redo. They will check for infection at the site, so don't worry about it.

Is tomorrow your 1st day........ EKG's etc?

Best of luck to you. If you didn't take any reading material, visit the library in the building to get some.

Keep us posted!