Text: 2021 Year in Review

2021: Year in Review

As 2021 ends, we would like to thank you for reading the Eloquest healthcare Blog! We hope you have found our posts during the last 12 months to be both informative and impactful to your professional career. Here are some of the past year’s highlights… One of our favorite posts of the year arrived in…

Text: Fewer Dressing Changes: Better for the patient and the bottom line

Fewer Dressing Changes: Better for the Patient and the Bottom Line

Frequent Dressing Disruptions Vascular access dressing disruptions occur frequently during vascular access device (VAD) maintenance, leading to premature dressing changes. This issue has been examined by multiple studies. According to a study undertaken by Timsit, et al., approximately 67% of central venous catheter (CVC) dressing changes are performed before the planned date.1 This can be…

Medical Adhesive-Related Skin Injury (MARSI) Causes and Prevention

It is well known that the use of medical adhesives is associated with potential skin damage during a variety of procedural and treatment courses, including vascular access. This skin damage can present as medical adhesive-related skin injury (MARSI). MARSI prevalence was examined in a study undertaken by Farris, et. al, to determine the scope of…

Text: Gum Mastic: What is it and why do I need it for my vascular access dressings?

Gum Mastic: What is it and why do I need it for my vascular access dressings?

Are you struggling with maintaining intact vascular access dressings for up to 7 days as recommended by the Infusion Therapy Standards of Practice? If so, consider the use of gum mastic to enhance dressing adherence!1 In the brief video below, S. Matthew Gibson RN, CRNI, VA-BC, CPUI shows the simple application process of Mastisol® Liquid…

Text: Improving Vascular Access Dressing Integrity Without Increased Skin Injury Risk

Improving Vascular Access Dressing Integrity Without Increased Skin Injury Risk

Maintaining Dressing Integrity to Prevent Infection Maintaining clean, dry, intact dressings over vascular access devices (VADs) is fundamental to site care. The 2021 Infusion Therapy Standards of Practice recommend that transparent dressings be changed at least every 7 days. However, if the dressing is disrupted ‐ meaning loose, wet, or soiled – the standards recommend…

Mechanical Circulatory Support: The Importance of Driveline Exit Site Care

Mechanical Circulatory Support to Manage Heart Failure Heart failure is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality that affects approximately 26 million patients worldwide, with rates continuing to climb.¹ Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) is an intervention to manage heart failure, often serving as bridge to transplantation (BTT) by providing acceptable quality of life for patients…

Text: Adhesive removal matters: protecting skin integrity

Adhesive Removal Matters: Protecting Skin Integrity

Adhesive Products are Common in Healthcare Adhesive products are staples of patient care. Inpatients are commonly exposed to a variety of adhesive products throughout their treatment duration. A study by Farris, et. al found that the median number of products per subject was 6.25 for patients in a cardiac‐telemetry unit and 3.0 for patients in…

Vascular Dressing Wear Time: The Gap between Guidelines and Practices

Vascular Dressing Wear Time: The Gap between Guidelines and Practices

Guidelines for Dressing Wear Time and Maintenance Guidelines for vascular access dressings focus on improving both wear time and dressing integrity. Maintaining intact dressings is important for preventing infection and minimizing risk of skin injury. It can also reduce unnecessary dressing changes and help wear time more closely match standard parameters. According to the 2021…

Peripheral Vascular Harm Named a 2021 Top Patient Safety Concern by ECRI

Peripheral Vascular Harm Named a 2021 Top Patient Safety Concern by ECRI

A Common Procedure with Prevalent Complications Vascular access is the most common inpatient invasive procedure, with more than 300 million peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVCs) sold in the United States each year to meet this demand.¹ Yet, this seemingly routine procedure has a failure rate of 35-50%.¹ Vascular access device failure can result in severe adverse events…

Financial Impact of SSI: Emerging From the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID Increases Strain on Hospital Systems Negative trends have been strongly projected for the healthcare system during the pandemic—yet, while COVID has posed many new challenges, financial strain is not a new issue for hospitals. All organizations need positive operating margins to survive long-term; this is especially important in the healthcare sector to ensure continuous…