Recognition of professional practice or specialty may come in many different ways. In 1980, the professional practice of infusion nursing was formally recognized when the United States House of Representatives declared January 25 as IV Nurse Day. This recognition was the beginning of what the infusion specialty has become. Specialization marks the advancement of nursing practice. It…
On a regular basis, I get questions from readers and from Twitter colleagues. Here are some of the Q’s and my A’s which I thought I’d blog about it in the spirit of sharing and learning. 1. Vancomycin Q: We give Vancomycin IV on a regular basis through an IV site in the arm at…
At a recent meeting, I was asked by an RN what her liability is if she administered an approved intravenous drug for an non-labeled indication prescribed by a physician to her patient and does she have the right to refuse to give the treatment even with the patient consent? A very interesting question and one that…
I must say this year really went by so fast and it’s Thanksgiving once again. Thanksgiving Day… a day filled with turkey/stuffing, pumpkin pie, an abundance of coma inducing foods, watching the “Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade” on TV, football, annoying jokes from the in-laws and oops don’t forget the reason for this day… being grateful, humble, and…
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…
..many facilities/organizations have them, some don’t. Many nurses know what their IV policies and procedures are, others don’t have a clue or don’t even know they should have one. Others say…yeah, we do have them but here’s what we do! Borrowed from a previous post- “Terms of Confusion” about Policies and Procedures: Policies are the established rules…
In the past, we have routinely replaced peripheral IV catheters every 48-72hours. Since INS 2011 Standard for Infusion Nursing revised it to site rotation based on clinical indications, PIV site assessment is even more important now. So how frequent should you assess the patient’s peripheral IV site? According to the latest Position Paper from the Infusion…
The poll results are in: 1. Do you think an RN should wear gloves when palpating for veins prior to venipuncture? Yes: 47 Votes 42% No: 65 Votes 58% 112 readers took the poll, and 58% said they think an RN should not wear gloves when palpating veins prior to venipuncture. 47% said they…
At each INS Annual Meeting, I am always looking forward to the exhibit hall. The exhibit hall was huge and to see every booths and exhibits, one needs a strategy to get through without missing any booth or presentation. My strategy is simple and that is…. to go down the numbered aisles and look around…
Midline catheters have been around since the 1950’s and with the increasing popularity of other venous access like PICCs, many have forgotten about this viable option for venous access. So let’s take a second look… A midline catheter is approximately 3-8 inches long and is inserted in the antecubital area and advanced into the peripheral…
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