How to check blood glucose with a glucometer
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In VMS you practice it on the patient.
A bedside glucose check takes a minute and can change the plan right away, especially in a confused patient. Every nursing and EMS program tests it.
What you need
- Glucometer and test strips
- Lancet
- Alcohol pad and gauze
- Gloves
- Sharps container
Step by step
Prepare
Check the order or protocol, clean your hands, introduce yourself, confirm the patient and explain. [1]
Check the meter
Strips not expired and matched to the meter, quality control done as your facility requires. [1]
Choose the site
Side of a fingertip. Ask the patient to wash with warm water or clean with alcohol and let it dry completely. [1]
Stick and collect
Gloves on, lancet on the side of the fingertip, wipe the first drop if the device instructions say so, then touch the strip to the next drop. [1]
Stop the bleeding and dispose
Gauze pressure on the site, lancet straight into the sharps container. [1]
Read and act
Below 70 mg/dL is low: follow the hypoglycemia protocol. Report high values as ordered. [2]
Record
Write the value, time and any treatment given. [1]
Common errors
- Wet alcohol on the finger diluting the drop.
- Squeezing the finger hard (tissue fluid changes the value).
- Recapping the lancet.
Practice it in VMS
In VMS you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
VMS cases that train this skill
Sources
- Open RN, Nursing Skills 2e (Chippewa Valley Technical College) (CC BY 4.0)
- NREMT psychomotor skill sheets (EMT and Paramedic)
Steps adapted from Open RN, Nursing Skills 2e (Chippewa Valley Technical College), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Facts and steps also follow NREMT psychomotor skill sheets (EMT and Paramedic). VMS is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.