To Replace or Not to Replace? Replacing Short Peripheral Catheters Based on Clinical Indication
Department
Nursing
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Journal of Infusion Nursing
Abstract
Short peripheral catheters (SPCs) are the most frequently used medical devices in hospital settings. Many hospital policies state that SPCs be replaced at 96 hours, which can be unnecessary and costly. A pre-post quality improvement initiative was implemented following complications surrounding removal of timed SPC catheters compared with those removed by clinical indication, using the Visual Infusion Phlebitis (VIP) scale. Data collected included patient demographics, SPC characteristics, nursing time, and product use. SPCs replaced based on clinical indication remained intact longer and had fewer complications than those in the group with routinely replaced SPCs. Decreasing SPC replacements by use of clinical indication resulted in cost savings of $7263.60/unit/month.
First Page
143
Last Page
148
DOI
10.1097/NAN.0000000000000322
Volume
42
Issue
3
Publication Date
5-1-2019
Recommended Citation
Maier, D. (2019). To Replace or Not to Replace? Replacing Short Peripheral Catheters Based on Clinical Indication. Journal of Infusion Nursing, 42 (3), 143-148. https://doi.org/10.1097/NAN.0000000000000322