Or, JCAHO, what have you done for me lately, because I can't find any references to your staff slapping the wrists of nursing facilities or hospitals for being incompetent at giving IV antibiotics. I surmise therefore, that you are not yet checking those 89 percent of the U.S. hospitals that you certify, for IV competence.
My first IV book and website have only been out for 7 years, so take your time. The patients can continue to die due to half doses of antibiotic being given, or your people could study up on how to program an IV pump to give the entire dose of antibiotic, and then enforce that skill across the whole country.
Nursing instructors and textbooks fail to guide students or nurses on how to program an IV pump to give the entire dose of IV antibiotics. Is JCAHO also going to continue to fail over 300 million Americans.
Please survey the RNs properly, and insist that nurses program the IV pump with sufficient "volume to be infused" to empty the antibiotic out of the IV tubing.
Pay special attention to item 4 of the survey tool in "25 to 50 percent of IV antibiotics do not reach the patient," by David Holt, and IV Policies one and two AKA Chapters One & Two in "5 Nursing IV Policies," also by Holt.
RN-IVPB.com
