Catheter Associated Bloodstream Infection Essay

Getting an infection from improper care during or after insertion of a central line is the last thing you want to get while in the hospital. This paper will discuss Kaiser Permanente’s policy on central venous catheter, also known as a central line, care and dressing change, and whether it follows the current evidence-based practice on preventing bloodstream infection in patients who have them inserted. I will explain about what a central line is, why evidence-based practice is important in the clinical setting, what Kaiser Permanente’s policy about central line care and dressing change is, if Kaiser is currently following evidence-based practice based on current articles about preventing central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), and what my role in using evidence-based practice is as a future registered nurse.

The purpose of this initiative is to decrease and/or eliminate central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Aurora Bay Care Medical Center. Hospital acquired infections, including CLABSI, is a major cause of mortality, prolonged hospitalization, and extra costs for NICU patients (Stevens & Schulman, 2012). The goal of this initiative is to decrease CLABSI by 75% by reducing the number of days lines are in and standardizing the insertion process and line maintenance.

Central lines are a common device used world wide in acute care settings for eligible patient populations such as those receiving chemotherapy, patients with poor venous access, or for those that require prolonged treatment of intravenous medications. Although central lines provide many advantages, they place patients at high risk for acquiring central line associated blood stream infections (CLABSI). CLABSI's are a serious complication associated with central lines and in some cases can be life threatening. There are many evidence based approaches that are used in acute care settings to reduce the incidence of CLABSI's such as meticulous skin care, daily bathing with chlorehexadine surgical scrub, and strict sterile technique when changing central line dressings. These prevention measures are a standard of care nationwide for patients with central lines since they are cost effective and evidence based. Unfortunately, even with proper implementation and compliance with these interventions, CLABSI's are still prevalent amongst vulnerable patient populations.

Article by Clancy (2009) explained central lines were a result of an estimated 250,000 blood stream infections and accounted for 30,000 to 62,000 patient deaths, then adding that each infection cost upwards of $36,000 and cumulatively add up to at least $9 billion in preventable costs annually. The article also explains how the mindset has changed from the cost of having a central line in place and expecting complications to lowering infection rates by an intentional interventional process/s. The article speaks of 5 basic steps to reduce CLABSI, hand washing, insertion techniques, skin cleansing, avoidance of certain sites and earlier removal of the CVC. Studies showed that these guidelines were only followed 62% of the time. The system was changed to ascertain that all the clinicians were in compliance. This prompted 5 interventions, education, a CVC insertion cart with all necessary equipment, physicians having to validate central line necessity, a concise checklist for bedside clinicians and the empower of nurses to stop procedures if guidelines were not followed. These low cost interventions from 11.3/1000 in catheter days in 1998 to zero in the fourth quarter of 2002.

One of the ways to combat the incidence of Central Line Associated Bloodstream Infection (CLABSI) is by following the proper steps in Central Line Dressing changes. The topic you picked is an important one, both for patients and our overall health care system as well. If nurses will learn, and follow the proper manner in the way Central Venous Lines should be changed it can have a positive outcome for patients. CLABSI can be fatal to the patient, this can devastate the patient's family as well. “Although a 46% decrease in CLABSIs has occurred in hospitals across the U.S. from 2008-2013, an estimated 30,100 central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) still occur in intensive care units and wards of U.S. acute care facilities each

The use of disinfecting Curos™ caps must be a routine practice on all oncology floors. This change can readily be implemented, as it does not take much training to learn how to use. The Curos™ caps should also be implemented already existing CLABSI prevention bundles. Considering the 12-25% high mortality rates of CLABSI, implementing the disinfecting caps could reduce the rates of CLABSI by as much as 66% (Whitfield& Lowe, 2013). According to Ramirez, Lee, & and Welch(2014) “ During 2010,the CLABSI rate reduced from 1.9 to 0.5 per 1,000 catheter days during a one-year trial period. Furthermore, compliance to CLABSI prevention bundles increased from 63% to 80% when implementing the disinfecting Curos ™ caps. This high

It can also occur during blood transfusion or during dressing change. The insertion of central catheters can occur in the Interventional Radiology or sometimes at the bedside. Regardless of the where the insertion process occur, a sterile field must always be maintained and sterile techniques must always be employed to prevent any organisms from being introduced to the central line into the patient. According to The Joint Commission (2013), many organizations such as Michigan Keystone Intensive Care Unit Project and Institute for Healthcare Improvement are actually adhering to insertion bundles to reduce the CLABSI rates. The bundles include hand hygiene, maximal barrier precautions, chlorhexidine skin preparation, avoidance of femoral vein, and prompt removal of central catheter. Furuya et al. (2011) studied the effectiveness of the insertion bundle and how it impacts the bloodstream infections for patients in the Intensive Care Unit. As a result, lesser infection have occurred when the compliance is high. As mentioned, the site of the catheter also needs to be considered in the insertion process. Avoiding areas such as the groin to access the femoral artery is recommended because this area can be easily contaminated with urine or feces. In addition, after the insertion of a new central line, all the used IV tubing

Also another serious complication of CAUTI is BSI (Blood stream infections) that can be fatal if not caught and treated promptly. “The Clinical Performance of Quality Health Care, along with Joint Commission” offers standards and objectives for facilities to assess measure and improve their standards at the lowest cost possible. The database covers nursing care and education, along with guidelines on prevention. Moreover the JCAHO regulatory standards for catheterized patients are explained and the documentation that is expected when JCAHO inspections are rendered in a facility. The source “Stop orders to reduce inappropriate urinary catheterization in hospitalized patients” states that by following standard precautions with every patient these infections can be prevented. . Also the source explored whether catheters should be used at all in an effort to decrease the incidence of CAUTI’s. Intermittent catheterizations along with supra-pubic were explored with a decreased incidence of bacteria being present in the bladder afterwards. The source “Strategies to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections in acute care hospitals” offered ways of cleansing and disinfecting the skin before insertion to reduce the risk of infection. Many CAUTI’s are linked to bacteria harboring in or around the site at insertion. By using not only aseptic technique but also cleansing the skin with chlorhexadine can decrease he incidence of infection

Use of central venous catheter is identified as risk factor for ESBL infection in neonate in various studies55,56. Central venous catheter by itself is not a risk for ESBL, but the care and handling of central venous catheter is a key for the prevention of ESBL and for sepsis in general53.

Only when it is absolutely necessary should a catheter be inserted into a patient. Every patient is assessed for the need for a Foley catheter. If the Foley is inserted, assessments are also then done daily to see if the need is still valid. If the reason is not justifiable the catheter must be removed from the patient (Joint Commission releases new NPSG for CAUTI, 2011). Nurses must follow guidelines while inserting indwelling catheters as well. Aseptic technique is critical to maintain during this process. The use of sterile equipment and a sterile procedure helps to reduce the risk of CAUTI. If in any way the catheter becomes contaminated during the process of insertion, the nurse should discard of the entire catheter and start with a new, sterile kit. Proper hand hygiene is very important before and after contact with indwelling catheters to decrease risk of infection. Maintenance of a close drainage is system is also important that way bacteria are not able to get in and cause infection (Revello & Gallo, 2013). Decreasing the number of times Foleys are inserted and how long they stay in for can help reduce the risk of CAUTI since the longer a Foley stays in, the higher the risk of infection becomes. Nurses must keep the catheter line patent, with no kinks to allow urine to flow freely through into the collection bag. When a urine sample must be obtained it must be done in a sterile

The nurse driven protocol was tested in 4 intensive care units. It included evidence-based orders for discontinuing, handling, and properly managing the catheters. One of the most important factors was the removal of the catheters in a timely manner. The data pre

The Quality Improvement nursing process that I have chosen to research is patient safety. I have chosen to focus specifically on the topic of catheter associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI’s) during hospitalization and their preventions. It is estimated that 15-25% of hospitalized patients receive a urinary catheter throughout their stay, whether or not they need it. A large 80% of all patients diagnosed with a urinary tract infection (UTI) can be attributed to a catheter (Bernard, Hunter, and Moore, 2012). The bacteria may gain entry into the bladder during insertion of the catheter, during manipulation of the catheter or drainage system, around the catheter, and after removal.

Nosocomial bloodstream infections are common in the NICU because medication and nutrition are provided through a central venous catheter, which serves as an entry point for microorganisms and therefore raises the risk of nosocomial bloodstream infections, mortality, and morbidity (Helder et al., 2014, p. 718). The importance of proper hand hygiene comes into play when health professionals wash their hands before assisting neonates such as washing their hands before touching, inserting, cleaning, or moving a central venous catheter in the neonates. If hand hygiene is not performed before these tasks the increase of infection increases; to prevent these infections proper hand hygiene must be performed. In a before and after study assessing the impact of a hand hygiene program conducted in a neonatal intensive care with very low weight infants Taylor, McDonald and Tan found that catheter- related infections decreased from 11 per 1000 catheter days to 3.1 per 1000 catheter days (Taylor et al., 2014, p.1225). Their study demonstrated the impact hand hygiene had as a technique to prevent bloodstream nosocomial

The priority nursing diagnosis of hospital acquired infection is risk for any kind of infection. One of the main goals for each patient in the hospital is the patient will remain free of infection as evidence by absence of heat, pain, redness, or swelling in any area of the patient’s body during each nurse’s shift. (care plan book). Frequently hand washing is the best intervention for preventing infection. Hand washing reduces the risk of transmission of pathogens by inhibiting the growth of or killing the microorganisms. (cb)Proper sterile technique during urinary

1) Summary of Article: Indwelling catheter use is common, but so are infections associated with them. About 80 percent of all urinary tract infections in hospitals are caused by catheters, and about 20 percent of all hospital infections total are UTIs. Evidence-based practice should be used for insertion, maintenance, and removal. Catheters should not be left in longer than they need to be. Unfortunately, this research shows poor administrative efforts are to blame for