IV Doc Makes Hangover House Calls
Jan. 20, 2014— -- If you're so hung-over you can't get to the local drug store for Advil, there's a new service that claims it can bring relief to your door.
The I.V. Doctor is a house call hangover service in New York City run by a urologist. Dr. Elliot Nadelson and his team provide in-home, hotel or office I.V. hydration for dehydration relief to members all hours of the day or night. The staff person that shows up at your door will hook you up to a fluid IV with optional anti-nausea, anti-heartburn and anti-inflammatory medication.
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"Our clients call us on demand because they need to resume their daily routine and don't have time to nurse their hangover or get over their flu symptoms," said Nadelson. "People are depending on them and they are depending on us."
The service, Nadelson said, works like this. A client calls after a long night out hosting their clients, for example, for an IV hydration treatment (hangover relief). Nadelson calls the client to "obtain a health history and discuss with the patient a tailored treatment." Nadelson will recommend a nurse or a physician's assistant be dispatched to the appointment.
I.V. Doctor, he said, hires only "highly trained" nurses and PAs. Most have worked emergency rooms or intensive care units for at least two years. "Several of our nurses have their certified registered nurse infusion certificate," he said.
Besides hangovers, I.V. Doctor treats dehydration from flu, overexertion and jetlag.
The service claims patients will start to feel hangover relief in 30 minutes. It works so fast because, according to I.V. Doctor, oral intake of fluids and vitamins has an absorption rate of 50 - 60 percent, where as I.V. hydration is 100 percent absorbed.
There's a similar service in Las Vegas. Hangover Heaven is a bus that cruises the Strip and makes in-room calls. They claim to have treated more than 10,000 hangovers on the bus and at their Vegas Hangover clinic.
WATCH: Las Vegas 'Hangover Bus' Cruises the Strip
And like those who visit Vegas, New Yorkers play hard. "New York is the city that doesn't sleep," said Nadelson. "It's the nightlife, culture, and financial epicenter of the world – so naturally people work hard and play harder."
But not all doctors think hangover-relief-by-I.V. is a great idea.
"Anyone drinking to the point where they need IV rehydration has a drinking problem," said ABC News Chief Medical Editor Dr. Richard Besser. "I would hope that as part of this service IV Doctor is also referring their patients for alcohol counseling."
In a report released earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control said 38 million U.S. adults drink too much. And only one in six adults talk with their doctor, nurse, or other health professional about their drinking.
Nadelson said that though it hasn't happened yet, if a client came to him several times in a week for IV hydration, he would refer them to counseling.
Membership in the I.V. Doctor club costs $399 and includes two, two-liter I.V.s per month.
