with infections during insertions .” These comments displayed thought and attention to the need for protection and application of guidelines , even during a crisis .
The last question in the survey asked for comments about the impact of COVID-19 and their experiences . Almost half responded ( 636 statements ) such as “ made most more diligent in care and maintenance of ultrasounds ,” “ I learned to love my mask ,” “ very challenging but we made it through ,” “ always practice safety measures all the time ,” “ our overall patient volume increased dramatically during COVID-19 , we always had necessary supplies but could have used more trained clinicians ,” takes a bit longer to get everything ready and we are unable have additional supplies close at hand taking longer to have someone bring you something to the door ,” “ increased time with preparation and cleaning ,” “ force the clinician to be a little more aware of their sterile technique and practice ,” “ at some point I felt overwhelmed ,” “ more courage to help that patient who needed vascular access , meticulous about infection control and maintaining sterile technique ,” “ to limit repetitive vascular access visits we placed extended dwell as much as possible ,” no formal education or expectation for staff wanting to use ultrasound for PIV insertions , ER staff begging for education , but hours are not supported due to cost , they pass bad habits on to each other , many variable supply practices ,” and “ masks required for all , number of visitors educed and feel like we did not change our care of patients .”
So many heartfelt responses , with positives and negatives , showed the level of concern and feeling for the situation , the
patients and the staff . Statements like “ very difficult time , stress levels have made work harder , nurses are angrier with each other and burnout has significantly increased ” compel us all to consider the impact on the daily struggles of the clinician within this pandemic .
While this follow-up survey provided a look into the education , policies and practices with UGPIV , it also gave us a much closer look into the inner workings and feelings of those on the forefront of patient care with COVID-19 . The thoughts and concerns expressed in the added text responses were too many to include but offered opportunities for improvement and hope that safety practices were thoughtfully applied whenever possible and that concern for the patient was ever present . Education and policies help to establish a foundation for those safety practices . But , in the end , the basic concepts of asepsis , the need for protection and disinfection must be ingrained into everyday activities , especially during a pandemic .
Nancy Moureau , RN , PhD , CRNI , CPUI , VA-BC , is the CEO of PICC Excellence , Inc ., adjunct associate professor , Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research ( AVATAR ) Group , Menzies Health Institute Queensland , Griffith University Brisbane .
Reference :
Moureau N , Gregory E G . Survey of ultrasound-guided peripheral intravenous practices : a report of supply usage and variability between clinical roles and departments . British Journal of Nursing . 2020 Oct 22 ; 29 ( 19 ): S30-8 .
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The Role of the Nose in Staphylococcus aureus Infections : Can We Mitigate the Risk ?
This webinar will describe the benefits of nasal decolonization for the prevention of Staphylococcus aureus infections and review the emerging data supporting comprehensive MRSA / MSSA colonization risk mitigation programs .
Since retiring as the national infection prevention director for Kaiser Permanente in 2016 , Sue Barnes , RN , CIC , FAPIC , now serves as an advisor and consultant for industry partners and professional organizations including APIC , AORN and IDSA . She is board-certified in infection control and prevention and was granted the designation of Fellow of APIC in 2015 . She has worked in the field of infection prevention since 1989 . She has participated in the development of APIC guides and served as a speaker for organizations including AORN and APIC . In addition , Barnes has been published in journals including AORN Journal , American Journal of Infection Control , the Joint Commission Source for Compliance Strategies and The Permanente Journal . She served on the national APIC board of directors from 2010 to 2012 , and the San Francisco APIC chapter board of directors from 2007 to 2017 .
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