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Blood glucose testing in a multi-patient setting
10.2 Testing blood glucose
Wear protective gloves.
Wash or disinfect the patient’s finger and allow it to dry thoroughly.
The drop of blood does not spread so easily over dry skin.
Use only a finger pricker that is approved for use by healthcare pro-
fessionals.
Use a finger pricker with adjustable penetration depth settings.
Select a penetration depth to suit the patient’s skin type. Start with a
shallow depth setting.
Select a puncture site along the side of a fingertip.
Turn the finger so the chosen puncture site is facing upwards, and
keep it facing upwards. The drop of blood cannot then spread so
easily.
Prick the side of the fingertip.
Using gentle pressure, massage the finger towards the fingertip to
encourage a drop of blood to form. A proper but nevertheless small
drop of blood (approx. 1.5 µL) must form.
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