what is the current practice on when to change valves? Every 24 hours with blood draws, every 72hours with tubing changes ?? We are finding a huge discrepancy and different practices everywhere. thank you!
Are you asking about needleless connectors? If so, the INS standards state the optimum change interval is unknown. CDC says to change on the same frequency as your continuous infusion sets, which should be no more frequently than q 96 h but at least once per week. The only recommendations for changing when drawing blood is to never draw a blood culture from a used connector as they will produce a high rate of false positive cultures. So always remove the used one, draw the sample and place a new one on the hub when obtaining blood cultures from a catheter. Changing every 24 hours will only open the line more frequently which also carries an increased risk of contamination. You should also check with the manufacturer of the connector you are using to see what their instructions state. Lynn
Are you asking about needleless connectors? If so, the INS standards state the optimum change interval is unknown. CDC says to change on the same frequency as your continuous infusion sets, which should be no more frequently than q 96 h but at least once per week. The only recommendations for changing when drawing blood is to never draw a blood culture from a used connector as they will produce a high rate of false positive cultures. So always remove the used one, draw the sample and place a new one on the hub when obtaining blood cultures from a catheter. Changing every 24 hours will only open the line more frequently which also carries an increased risk of contamination. You should also check with the manufacturer of the connector you are using to see what their instructions state. Lynn
Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RN, BC, CRNI
Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc.
126 Main Street, PO Box 10
Milner, GA 30257
Website http://www.hadawayassociates.com
Office Phone 770-358-7861