Evaluation of parenteral injection skills of medical undergraduates on mannequins in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India – A cross-sectional study

Appropriate knowledge and expertise of parenteral injection is vital in the medical field. Hence we impart training on mannequins before the students practice on patients. This study was conducted to evaluate the skill exhibited by the students in parenteral injection skills, namely intravenous, intramuscular, intradermal and subcutaneous injections. The students were assessed for step based on the pre-validated check list created for Objective Structured Practical Examination. In this study, 16 % of the students failed to check the prescription order before starting the procedure. The name and the expiry date of the drug was not checked by 22 % of the students. Hundred percent of the students sterilized their hands. Loading of drug was done properly by 80 % of the students and 88 % of the students checked for air bubbles in the syringe and removed them properly. The site for injection was not sterilized by 26 percent of the students. Tourniquet was not applied by 19 percent of the students and 28 % of the students did not hold the bevel up during insertion for intravenous route. The steps where frequent faltering happened needs to be emphasized for them to perform better in a more efficient manner during the summative assessment as well as for future practice.