@charlotte12
I understand your anxiety about IVs, I also have difficult veins and they roll. My best vein is in one arm, but if have to have IVs or blood draws often, I do not like to keep using the same vein. I had lymph nodes removed from one arm, so try to avoid that one. Using your hand is OK, in fact when I have IVs for MRIs, they always use hand.

Clinics have different protocols, some only use phlebotomist at other clinics nurses do IVs. Like you mentioned, it often comes down to person doing the IV. When I was having chemo, the protocol was nurse could try twice, and if unsuccessful, they called their "expert" in to do IV.

I tell them my veins roll, so they know what to expect. Like previous suggested, be hydrated, ask if they have a warm blanket you can wrap your arm in prior to trying. One location used warm blanket and a garbage bag over that to increase the heat. At one location, they had a infrared light to help locate veins, in my opinion it only helped find veins, but it was still the skill of person inserting the needle.

If your anxiety is high, maybe mention to provider ordering the IVs, they may prescribe something to calm you down.

Do you have to have IVs often?