Changing the Buffer in Buffered Lidocaine.

Hospitalized patients require venous access for procedures, treatments, or therapies. The use of lidocaine for pain relief during central vascular access device (CVAD) insertion is a standard of practice. Lidocaine buffered with sodium bicarbonate has been shown to provide significantly more pain relief in the sensation of pain upon injection. Shortages of lidocaine with bicarbonate provided an opportunity to explore other options to provide pain relief during CVAD insertion. The PICO question for this project was: In adult patients requiring CVAD insertion, how does lidocaine buffered with bicarbonate compare with lidocaine buffered with saline in minimizing pain with lidocaine injection? This study assessed how lidocaine buffered with bicarbonate compares with lidocaine buffered with saline in minimizing pain with lidocaine injection. Sixty patients received the buffered lidocaine before having a peripherally inserted central catheter inserted. Thirty patients received lidocaine buffered with bicarbonate and 30 patients received lidocaine buffered with saline. Pain and vasoconstriction were the 2 outcomes monitored during the project. Although the trial was only 2 wk due to the urgency of the rollout, the pilot was able to offer clinicians the opportunity to compare the 2 products. The saline-buffered lidocaine provided comparable pain relief compared with the lidocaine buffered with bicarbonate. The clinicians also measured the amount of vasoconstriction caused by the 2 products with similar outcomes.

A Qualitative Study of Adult Hospitalized Patients With Difficult Venous Access Experiencing Short Peripheral Catheter Insertion in a Hospital Setting.

Hospitalized patients require venous access for procedures, treatments, or therapies. The short peripheral catheter (SPC) is one option for patients who need intravenous (IV) access for treatment. Patients with difficult vasculature sometimes require multiple attempts to obtain SPC access. The aim of this study was to gain an understanding of adult patients' experiences with SPC insertion, specifically those with difficult venous access. Ten participants were purposely sampled over a 2-month period for semistructured interviews from the medical, surgical, and telemetry units at an inner city, 750-bed trauma hospital in the southwestern United States. Four key themes developed from the interview data: skills and techniques of the clinicians, distress and the SPC insertion experience, physical and emotional pain, and patient/clinician communication. These themes provided ways that clinicians might improve the patient experience, including: ensuring experienced and confident inserters are available to insert SPCs, utilizing distraction and pain methods to decrease pain perception, communicating with patients regarding site selection and expectations during SPC insertion, and identifying patients with difficult vascular access to limit attempts per patient to preserve vascular sites.

The Role of the Registered Nurse in the Insertion of Nontunneled Central Vascular Access Devices.

As the result of requests from several state boards of nursing, the Infusion Nurses Society (INS) convened a task force to determine whether insertion of central vascular access devices by appropriately trained registered nurses (RNs) should be recommended. The task force consisted of RNs and advanced practice registered nurses with infusion therapy experience in various practice settings. The results are presented in INS' newest position paper, adopted by the INS Board of Directors, September 2017.

Efficacy of Reducing Alteplase Dose to Restore Patency in Nonhemodialysis Central Vascular Access Devices.

Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are preventable through vigilant and thorough care. When CLABSIs occurred at a facility in Southwest Arizona, the root cause analysis discovered that declotting agents, such as alteplase, were not given routinely when nonhemodialysis (non-HD) central vascular access devices (CVADs) lacked blood return. A PICO question was developed that guided the review of literature and central line care standards of practice: In the adult patients with non-HD central lines, what medications are currently recommended to restore patency? As a result of this project, our facility instituted a new protocol using a reduced dose of alteplase to restore patency to non-HD CVADs.