This clinical pearl is going to go back to some very basics, but I think it is needed as more and more of you are administering vaccines, trigger point injections, and injections in your clinic. Plus, it increases patient satisfaction in your practice.

I have a newer medical assistant at my men’s health clinic that doesn’t have a lot of experience doing injections, so I had to teach him the basics. The result? Increased patient satisfaction and retention. Now patients aren’t terrified of him being the one giving the injection (haha).

So, do you have patients who are “needle phobic” secondary to the pain of the injection? Here is a quick tip (and a reminder for many of you) on how to administer an injection practically pain free.

Pinch the skin between the thumb and index finger as you apply downward traction inferior and away from the injection site. If you do this, patients will rarely feel any pain. In fact, they will be angry with you because you are pinching their skin! This works great for pediatric patients as well. I have taught all the medical assistants who I have ever worked with this trick (including my new one, who I forgot to teach this to!), and it works wonders!