here we go again...
intravenous therapry is an invasive, advanced life support skill. when i was trained is this skill, we spent a full week of classes(m-f 9-330) covering the anatomy/physiology of the veinous system. the indications and contraindications of iv therapy. fluid/electrolyte balance. how much fluid to give and how fast. catheter types and thier uses. preperation, insertion, securement. how to examine for patency. what to do when it goes wrong. and the list goes on. its my opinion, given the dumbing down of ems curriculum nationwide, that the bls version of this course material would amount to maybe 10hrs of lecture, a few pokes at the rubber arm and a card to put in your wallet. while i strongly believe that 95% of the basic out there could handle this skill, the other 5% ruin it for you.
case in point: a rural system has just authorized bls iv therapy. bls truck get call for c/p. crew arrives on scene and decides to initiate an iv. they spend 40min onscene, blow every vein they could find and decide to t/p. their transport time to the H, 14min. while this may be the exception to the rule, it still happens. and yes, maybe it happens with -p's too but not as much.
not every pt needs a line just "because i can". there are physiological considerations that need to be factored in. now i under stand that there are plenty of services that use -iv or -i crews that start hundreds of lines every day. but you have to have a need, not just a toy you want to play with.
as we all said in the magill thread, if you want to be a medic, go to medic school. learn how to do this stuff well and you be a better tech for it.