Wash your hands. Wash your hands with soap and warm water to prevent potential infection. Be sure to thoroughly scrub between fingers, on the backs of hands, and under fingernails. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Trusted Source  recommends lathering for 20 seconds — the time it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice.

2. Gather supplies. Assemble the following supplies:

• needle and syringe with medication or auto-injector pen
• alcohol pads
• gauze
• puncture-resistant container to discard the used needles and syringe (typically a red, plastic “sharp’s container”)
• bandages

3. Clean and inspect the injection site. Before injecting medication, inspect your skin to make sure there’s no bruising, burns, swelling, hardness, or irritation in the area. Alternate injection sites to prevent damage to an area with repeated injections. Then you should clean the skin with an alcohol swab. Let the alcohol dry thoroughly before doing the injection.

4. Prepare the syringe with medication. Before withdrawing medication from a vial and injecting yourself or someone else, make sure you’re using the correct medication, at the correct dose, at the correct time, and in the right manner. Use a new needle and syringe with every injection.

Preparing a syringe:

Remove the cap from the vial. If the vial is multidose, make a note about when the vial was first opened. The rubber stopper should be cleaned with an alcohol swab.

Draw air into the syringe. Draw back the plunger to fill the syringe with air up to the dose that you’ll be injecting. This is done because the vial is a vacuum, and you need to add an equal amount of air to regulate the pressure. This makes it easier to draw the medication into the syringe. Don’t worry, though — if you forget this step, you can still get the medication out of the vial.

Insert air into the vial. Remove the cap from the needle and push the needle through the rubber stopper at the top of the vial. Inject all the air into the vial. Be careful to not touch the needle to keep it clean.

Withdraw the medication. Turn the vial and syringe upside down so the needle points upward. Then pull back on the plunger to withdraw the correct amount of medication.

Remove any air bubbles. Tap the syringe to push any bubbles to the top and gently depress the plunger to push the air bubbles out.

Preparing an auto-injector:

• If you’re using a pen delivery system, attach the needle to the pen.
• The first time you use the pen, you’ll need to prime it to push out extra air in the delivery system.
• Dial a small dose (usually 2 units or 0.02 mL, or as indicated by the package instructions) and push the button to expel the primer.
• Dial the correct dose and prepare for your injection.

5. Inject the medication.

Pinch your skin. Take a big pinch of skin between your thumb and index finger and hold it. (Your thumb and forefinger should be about an inch and a half apart.) This pulls the fatty tissue away from the muscle and makes the injection easier.

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Inject the needle. Inject the needle into the pinched skin at a 90-degree angle. You should do this quickly, but without great force. If you have very little fat on your body, you may need to inject the needle at a 45-degree angle to the skin.

Insert the medication. Slowly push the plunger to inject the medication. You should inject the entire amount of medication.

Withdraw the needle. Let go of the pinched skin and withdraw the needle. Discard the used needle in a puncture-resistant sharp’s container.

Apply pressure to the site. Use gauze to apply light pressure to the injection site. If there’s any bleeding, it should be very minor. You may notice a little bruising later. This is common and nothing to be concerned about.

Any person who administers intramuscular injections should receive training and education on proper injection technique.

The needle size and injection site will depend on many factors. These include the age and size of the person receiving the medication, and the volume and type of medication.

Your doctor or pharmacist will give you specific guidelines about which needle and syringe are appropriate to administer your medication.

The needle should be long enough to reach the muscle without penetrating the nerves and blood vessels underneath. Generally, needles should be 1 inch to 1.5 inches for an adult and will be smaller for a child. They’ll be 22-gauge to 25-gauge thick, noted as 22g on the packaging.

Follow these steps for a safe intramuscular injection:

1. Wash your hands

Wash your hands with soap and warm water to prevent potential infection. Be sure to thoroughly scrub between your fingers, on the backs of your hands, and under your fingernails.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Trusted Source  recommends lathering for 20 seconds, which is the time it takes to sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.

2. Gather all the needed supplies

Assemble the following supplies:

• needle and syringe with medication

•  alcohol pads

•  gauze

• puncture-resistant container to discard the used needles and syringe (typically a red, plastic sharps container)

•  bandages

3. Locate the injection site

To isolate the muscle and target where you’ll place the injection, spread the skin at the injection site between two fingers.

The person receiving the injection should get into a position that is comfortable, provides easy access to the location, and keeps the muscles relaxed.

4. Clean the injection site

Clean the site selected for injection with an  alcohol swab and allow the skin to air dry.

5. Prepare the syringe with medication

• Remove the cap. If the vial or pen is multidose, take a note about when the vial was first opened. The rubber stopper should be cleaned with an alcohol swab.

• Draw air into the syringe. Draw back the plunger to fill the syringe with air up to the dose that you’ll be injecting. This is done because the vial is a vacuum and you need to add an equal amount of air to regulate the pressure. This also makes it easier to draw the medication into the syringe. If you forget this step, you can still get the medication out of the vial.

• Insert air into the vial. Remove the cap from the needle and push the needle through the rubber stopper at the top of the vial. Inject all of the air into the vial. Be careful to not touch the needle to keep it clean.

• Withdraw the medication. Turn the vial and syringe upside down so the needle points upward and pull back on the plunger to withdraw the correct amount of medication.

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• Remove air bubbles. Tap the syringe to push any bubbles to the top and gently depress the plunger to push the air bubbles out.

6. Self-inject with a syringe

Hold the needle like a dart and insert it into the muscle at a 90-degree angle. You should insert the needle in a quick but controlled manner. Do not push the plunger in.

7. Inject the medication

Push the plunger slowly to inject the medication into the muscle.

8. Remove the needle

Withdraw the needle quickly and discard it into a puncture-resistant sharps container. Do not put the cap back on the needle.

A sharps container is a red container that you can purchase at any pharmacy. It’s used to collect medical waste, like needles and syringes. You should not put any of these materials into the regular garbage, as needles can be hazardous to anyone who handles the trash.

9. Apply pressure to the injection site

Use a piece of gauze to apply light pressure to the injection site. You can even massage the area to help the medication be absorbed into the muscle. It’s normal to see slight bleeding. Use a bandage if necessary.