Inventor: Maria Plummer RN, BScN, CVAA(c), CON(c) Maria is an oncology nurse from Toronto, Canada and has cared for both children and adults throughout her career. She holds nationally recognized certifications with the Canadian Vascular Access Association and with the Canadian Nurses Association in Oncology. The Problem During more than 30 years in nursing, Maria…
New Study Comparing Benefits of SecurAcath to Adhesive Securement Devices Last month, the findings from a peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) securement study at the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in England were published in the Journal of Vascular Access by authors Carol McCormick, Mickey Hawes and Gregory Gilbert. The article expanded on the data set first…
Does the Securement of Drains Matter?Guest Author: M.L. Hawes, DNP, CRNI, VA-BC, ACRP-CP Consider: What is the difference between a vascular access round-tube in a vein to infuse life-saving medications or a drainage round-tube to relieve the body of excess life-ending fluids? Both round tubes need to be secured to accomplish the therapeutic goal. Drains…
Hospital Onset Bacteremia (HOB): Let’s Talk About ReportingGuest Author: Michelle DeVries MPH, CIC, VA-BC, CPHQ, FAPIC For several years there has been a lot of chatter about potential future expansion of bloodstream infection surveillance to move beyond only Central Line-Associated Bloodstream infections (CLABSI) and expand to include all hospital onset bacteremia (HOB). As this gets…
Wednesday Workshop Summary: Growing a Vascular Access Specialty Team (VAST) – One Step at a Time A vascular access specialist model has proven to reduce healthcare acquired complications including catheter-associated infections.1 A specialty team approach also is supported by evidence-based guidelines.2 Despite the evidence for improved patient safety, not all hospitals have a dedicated Vascular…
Evidence-Based Strategies for Cost-Effective Occlusion ManagementGuest Author: Lee Steere, RN, CRNI, VA-BCNurse Manager, IV Therapy Services, Hartford Hospital Eloquest Healthcare is excited to welcome Lee Steere RN, CRNI, VA-BC to the Eloquest Healthcare Blog! Lee Steere, RN, CRNI, VA-BC has been leading the IV Team at Hartford Hospital for nearly 20 years. At his facility,…
Nurses Love Tape But It Can Be A Sticky Situation To Remove It Medical adhesive products are a critical tool in healthcare. Across virtually every medical specialty, the use of adhesives facilitates better securement of dressings and medical devices. Proper device securement is particularly important in vascular access, where the overarching goal is to provide…
3 Questions with Michelle (Mickey) Hawes, RN, DNP, CRNI, VA-BC, ACRP-CP Our “3 Questions with…” vlog series features some of the finest thought leaders in healthcare specialties such as Infection Prevention, Vascular Access, and more. These experts answer questions on the latest insights, evidence and current practices. For our newest “3 Questions With…” vlog, Eloquest…
3 Questions with Casey Schuller, BSN, RN, VA-BC Our “3 Questions with…” vlog series features some of the finest thought leaders in healthcare specialties such as Infection Prevention, Vascular Access, 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…
The 8th edition of The Infusion Nurses Society Infusion Therapy Standards of Practice (INS Standards) makes evidence-based practice recommendations to assist health care facilities in the standardization of their vascular access device and IV therapy practices. The INS Standards indicate that insertion site selection should be determined based on the prescribed infusion therapy plan while prioritizing vessel…