Q: You will think I am a complete idiot but please explain when is a single use syringe considered used? I need to explain to my practice manager why I can’t re-use a syringe while reconstituting a powdered medication for injection. My practice manager is complaining that I am using too many syringes and needles which…
as in discontinuing (removal) a central venous access device. Certainly, many of us have discontinued a central venous access device (central line) before. No big deal, right? One key element to remember when discontinuing a CVAD is to include precautions to prevent air embolism. Air embolism from removal of central lines can occur when a…
We’ve all heard it before…in healthcare, anything can happen, hence there is no guarantee. Well, that is until the press release for a new needlefree catheter patency device called “Neutron” came out on Oct. 4, 2011. Click here for the press release. Neutron, according to its manufacturer ICU Medical, is the world’s first and only…
In response to a question from a former ER nurse who now works for a physician office providing infusion services, I came upon this guide from the CDC. The question is why should infection control practices in a physician’s office differ from those in the hospital? In particular, this nurse was appalled that the physician…
I am back from the INS 2011 meeting in Louisville and although it was exhausting, one can’t say they didn’t learn anything, The week was packed with educational sessions that focused on may different core aspects of infusion nursing. The exhibit hall was packed with vendors and manufacturers eager to showcase their latest and greatest…
Last February 2010, I wrote a blog when I observed some nurses re-using syringes. I couldn’t believe that a nurse would actually re-use a syringe but it happened and I was there to see it. Here’s my blog post in case you missed it…“Single Use Only” I wanted to believe that it was an isolated…
The long awaited update to the 2002 CDC Guidelines for the Prevention of Intravascular Catheter -Related Infections was released today April 1 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC). The 2011 guidelines outline steps to eliminate bloodstream infections in patients with intravenous catheters, which…
The FDA released this alert a few days ago: Triad Group Issues a Voluntary Nationwide Recall of All Lots of Alcohol Prep Pads, Alcohol Swabs, and Alcohol Swabsticks Due to Potential Microbial Contamination What??? Are you serious? We use these products to disinfect areas such as skin, injection ports, connectors, etc… prior to injection or…
…the devices that allow connections of infusion sets and catheter hubs. Unless you have been living under a rock, no one should be using needles to make that connection, thus the term…needleless connectors. In a previous blog, I posted about an FDA Alert on Positive Displacement Needleless Connectors . After I did, I realized that…
Yet another FDA Alert – this time on positive displacement needleless connectors – a device all nurses are very familiar with and use on a daily basis on patients requiring infusion therapy. The FDA has received three reports of death associated with BSI and positive displacement needleless connectors. Infection control authorities are also concerned about…
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