1. The ASHP Guidelines on Home Infusion Pharmacy Services – defines the role of the pharmacist in providing home infusion care to patients and to outline minimum requirements (indicated by use of the word “shall”) and best practices for the operation and management of services provided by pharmacies in the home or alternate-site setting. Home…
Q: We have a 24/7 vascular access team, yet we find that an ultrasound machine in a medical floor is used for PIV insertion by untrained nurses and residents. The machine is there for other purposes but is being used for hard IV sticks. A: There is increasing evidence to show the use of ultrasound or…
These two terms defined by the Infusion Nurses Society means: Vesicant – an agent capable of causing blistering, tissue sloughing or necrosis when it escapes from the intended vascular pathway into surrounding tissue. Extravasation – the inadvertent infiltration of vesicant solution or medication into surrounding tissue. There are several chemotherapeutic agents with vesicant properties, and…
This great resource in available free to download to INS members from the INS website – SPC Checklist. SPC means short peripheral catheter, which man y of us call “peripheral IV catheter” or “PIV”. This checklist was part of the IV Safety Task Force position paper project on Recommendations for Improving Safety Practices for Short…
In June of 2013, I was honored to chair a national task force for the Infusion Nurses Society’s (INS) project on Short Peripheral Catheter Safety (SPC). Along with five other colleagues, we embarked on a task to identify the safety and practice issues and look at ways to promote safety in the insertion and management…
Q: Do you have any tips on how to improve my IV insertion skills? A: This is one of the FAQ and often comes from new blog readers. I have blogged about this many times before but I thought I’d post it again. To some of my long time readers, this may not be new…
Q: What kind of IV solutions can be given through a PICC line? Is it safe to give Humolog insulin or should I start another IV line? A: PICC is short for peripherally inserted central catheter. It is a central vascular access device (CVAD) inserted into an extremity and advanced in the venous system until…
Q: Can you please let me know if a PICC line dressing can be a clean procedure or does it have to be sterile? A: First, I will direct you to your organization’s policy and procedure on central vascular access device (CVAD) dressing change procedure to determine the procedure to follow. If you can’t locate…
Q: How can I be IV certified? If I attend an IV program, will I be IV certified? A: If I get a dollar every time I get asked this question, I would be a very rich infusion nurse!! But seriously, the confusion about IV certification have been in existence for as long as I…
Today, the Infusion Nurse Blog is celebrating it’s “4th year” blog anniversary!!! WOW…I can’t believe it has been four years already. I am sincerely grateful and humbled as our readers and site numbers continue to grow each year. It is my hope that you will continue to visit, read, post comments, and subscribe to my blog posts.…
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