Improving patient safety

Over that past few months, IV therapy and vascular access practice has been the focus of national health departments, with the release of guidelines and protocols to assist with clinical practice. The National Infusion and Vascular Access Society (NIVAS) has been working in collaboration with many of them.

It is evident that one of the many areas of practice the pandemic has highlighted is the importance of vascular access and IV therapy. As our specialty has been noticed more over the past 2 years, so too, unfortunately, have the associated complications. NIVAS members have reported that they have seen an increase in the rates of catheter-related blood stream infections (CRBSIs) and other complications and it is not always easy to understand why this is.

It is well-evidenced that vascular access devices and IV therapy practice pose an increased risk of being a source of infection to our patients. Device-related infection prevention practice is on the national agenda and NIVAS, alongside the Infection Prevention Society, ANTT^® and the Association for Safe Aseptic Practice, is about to launch a pathway to help reduce IV CRBSIs and improve patient and staff safety.