Directions for Use: Drawing Medication from an Ampoule

Before injecting yourself, draw the medication from the ampoule following these simple steps:

Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water. When indicated on the label, carefully shake or rotate the ampoule. Check to see if there is any liquid in the top part of the ampoule. If there is, gently flick the ampoule with your finger to make it descend.

Wipe the neck of the ampoule (the narrow part) with an alcohol swab, and wrap the swab around the neck. Hold the ampoule in a vertical position by gripping the lower part gently with the fingers of one hand and the neck with the fingers of the other. Break the ampoule by pressing your thumb against the ampoule neck, while pushing upward and away from the ampoule. For a plastic ampoule, simply twist off the top.

Tilt the ampoule downward at a 45° angle and insert the needle into the solution. Draw the desired amount of medication by slowly pulling the plunger out, making sure that the needle is always immersed in the solution. Cover the needle with its cap as soon as you are finished. If there are air bubbles in the syringe, hold the syringe in a vertical position with the needle pointing upward. Gently tap a finger against the barrel of the syringe to get the bubbles to rise to the top. Slowly push in the plunger until all the bubbles have disappeared.

Clean the skin where you plan to inject the drug using an alcohol swab and use the injection technique you learned from your health-care professional.

Needles and syringes should only be used once and then thrown away since they may be dirty and blunt. Always use a sharps (disposal) container to safely discard used syringes, needles, and broken ampoules. Return the container to the pharmacy when it is full or you no longer need it.