When the routine becomes too routine

A vascular access procedure is one of the most common, but also potentially dangerous, procedures carried out by medical staff. Yet even the most experienced professionals can slip up when under pressure. HARTMANN recognizes the challenges and offers practical support.

Does practice really make perfect?

90% of all patients admitted to a hospital receive a peripheral intravenous catheter1. The commonality of the procedure means medical staff are quite familiar with what they are doing. So what can go wrong?

Stress interferes with good routine

While staff may be confident about their routines, external circumstances can undermine their confidence, whether too many patients, too little time or staff shortages. Under stress, they may switch into “auto-pilot” as a way to cope and even under the belief that they are saving time. It’s exactly these little moments of inattention that can lead to an asepsis breach – resulting in serious consequences and ultimately costing more time and creating unneeded stress. It can become a vicious circle.

There are many phases to preparing venous access: hand and body disinfection, putting on protective clothing as well as gathering and preparing infusion materials, including dressing materials. In each phase, an inattentive moment can mean individual components become desterilized or skin is inadequately prepared.

Philippe R., OR nurse and patient’s husband
Most of the time, asepsis breach in peripheral venous catheterisation occurs in the little moments around the technical steps of the procedure.
Philippe R., OR nurse

Considering the stress and time pressure that medical staff are under, it’s good to have SOPs that help you keep on track. A checklist of the exact steps during a venous catheterization are easy for staff to understand and to follow. The adoption of standardized best practices reduce CLABSI rates by more than 50%2.

Download the checklist for the "Peripheral venous catheterization care procedure with single-use sterile tourniquet

The building blocks of a good routine

routine

HARTMANN has devised its own unique, multi-modal approach to reducing rates of infection through venous access. The portfolio combines sterile, easy-to-use, pre-packaged Infusion MediSets® with training and digital aids to support a high level of adherence to aseptic techniques and standardized protocols. Using Infusion MediSets® simplifies preparation and leaves you more time to concentrate on each step. Hygienists have reported that the use of sterilized infusion sets in a product bundle reduces errors by 35%3.

We work together with you to tailor solutions to your medical establishment, bringing your tactics for infection prevention to a new level of effectiveness and safety.

Learn more about the 5 MediSets®for peripheral venous catheterization.

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Sources
11. Helm RE, Klausner JD, Klemperer JD, Flint LM, Huang E. Accepted but unacceptable: peripheral IV catheter failure. J Infus Nurs 2015; 38(3): 189-203. DOI: 10.1097/NAN.0000000000000100
2https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/wh1.thewebconsole.com/wh/4798/images/Timsit2018_Article_AStateOfTheArtReviewOnOptimalP.pdf
3 Fenik et al. (2013) Prepackaged central line kits reduce procedural mistakes during central line insertion: a randomized controlled prospective trial. BMC Medical Education 13:60.