Stories from the Community Meet Swapna Kakani: Short Bowel Syndrome Warrior

Swapna Kakani was diagnosed at birth with a rare chronic disease, Short Bowel Syndrome. For 27 years, Swapna has lived with supplemental intravenous nutrition and a feeding tube (from 0-24 she had a gastrostomy tube and from 24 onwards she has had an ileostomy). She has undergone several surgeries at multiple hospitals throughout the United…

Stories from the Community Meet Isabelle Edwards: Type 2 Diabetes & Gastroperisis Warrior

Isabelle Edwards is known across the internet as the Diabetes Diva, and if you ever have the privilege of meeting her, you will understand why! Isabelle lives with Type 2 Diabetes, but her enthusiasm for life, her kindness, and her glamour are what you remember after spending time with her. She is a fierce advocate…

Stories from the Community Meet Emily Levy: Lyme disease, POTS, CIDP, and Hashimoto’s Warrior

When Emily Levy was a sophomore in college, she was diagnosed with neurological Lyme disease and required a PICC to facilitate her treatment. This PICC was the first of many vascular access devices Emily has depended on and, unfortunately, Lyme was only the first of many diagnoses to come. Despite facing long term illness and…

Top 5 Nursing Podcasts

Whether you’re on the go or trapped in the office, podcasts are a great way to consume content in a refreshing. With a hectic schedule, nurses can certainly relate and enjoy the convenience of learning, laughing, and reflecting about their profession during their commute, while working on another project, exercising or even during their downtime.…

3 Questions with Gwen Borlaug MPH, CIC, FAPIC

Our newest edition of 3 Questions With… 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… Eloquest Healthcare is proud to feature Gwen…

The Neglected Catheter: Peripheral Vascular Access Device‐Related Infection: Clinical and Legal Perspectives

“Up to 90% of hospitalized patients can require a PVAD during their stay, however, greater than 60% of PVADs fail due to dislodgement, phlebitis, occlusion, infiltration, or infection.”¹ PVAD infections are so prevalent that the topic “Infections from Peripherally Inserted IV Lines” became number 9 in the ECRI Institute’s 2019 Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns.…

Does a Patient’s Socioeconomic Status Influence Their Risk for SSI?

The access to, use of, and quality of health care can vary based on socioeconomic status, which can be measured by income, education, and/or occupation.1,2 Socioeconomic factors can be associated with various health outcomes, one of them being surgical site infection (SSI) which affects up to 5% of surgical procedures nationwide.3 However, the association between…

Reducing CLABSI and MARSI Risk Through Improved Vascular Access Dressing Integrity

Vascular Access Dressing Adherence and Hospital-acquired Infections Central venous access device (CVAD) related infections have a 12‐25% mortality in ICU populations. [1] Due to dressing disruption, central line‐associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) may occur. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Infusion Nurses Society (INS) agree that vascular access device (VAD) dressing…