Question: Can you explain Intravenous therapy for me please?

Angela Stokes answered on 11 Nov 2014:

Hi Barry Scott
Intravenous therapy is when you are given a medicine or other treatment via a tube and a needle placed in a vein usually in your arm. On casualty you often see people running beside a patient on a trolley with a bag of fluid held up in their hand. This is an intravenous infusion or more commonly we call it a ‘drip’. The drip is used to ensure a patient doesn’t dehydrate (when you don’t have enough fluid) but you can also add some medicines to a drip or you can give a medicine through the same tube and needle.