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…

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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…

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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…

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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…

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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…

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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…

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3 Questions with Jo Ann Brooks PhD, RN, FAAN, FCCP

3 Questions with Jo Ann Brooks PhD, RN, FAAN, FCCP 3 Questions With… features some of the finest thought leaders in healthcare specialties such as Infection Prevention, Vascular Access, Surgical Care and more. These experts answer questions on the latest insights, evidence and current practices. For our newest 3 Questions With… vlog, Eloquest Healthcare is proud…

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Pitfalls of Catheter Securement: The Dressing (Part 2)

S. Matthew Gibson’s webinar “Pitfalls of Catheter Securement: The Dressing (Part 2)” explores different modalities and efficacies of catheter securement, identifies common causes of securement failure, and emphasizes the difference between stabilization and securement. Gibson also reviews the INS best practice recommendations for vascular access device and dressing securement, delving into the benefits of gum mastic…

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Evidence‐Based Products and Practices Facilitate the Pivot to Telemedicine

Pivoting to Telemedicine Throughout the COVID‐19 pandemic, social distancing and reducing in‐person interactions have been essential to decrease viral spread. The healthcare industry has largely pivoted to telehealth per CDC recommendations, conducting clinical visits via virtual methods and operating in‐person facilities at restricted capacity. Doing so reduces unnecessary patient contact and exposure.¹ In order for…

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