See NHSGGC Vascular Access Devices Guidelines for information on PVC / CVC.
Approximately 30% of our Adult Acute Hospital in-patients will have a Peripheral Venous Catheter (PVC) in place during their stay and in order to minimise the risk of bloodstream infections (bacteraemia) it is important that clinical staff are aware of the salient education points:
Vascular Access Devices (Adult / Paediatric in-patients):
Skin is cleansed with an antiseptic containing chlorhexidine 2% in 70% isopropyl alcohol and left to dry before VAD insertion for all adult and paediatric patients.
Skin decontamination for neonates is either 0.5% aqueous chlorhexidine or chlorhexidine 2% in 70% isopropyl alcohol and left to dry before VAD insertion.
Access should be via the needlefree access device and not the port at the top of the device. Before accessing this you should “scrub the hub” for at least 15 seconds with chlorhexidine 2% in 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe. This should be allowed to dry before connection to other equipment.
A single or multi-lumen needlefree access devices must be primed with 0.9% normal saline before attaching to VADs. Needlefree access devices used on Peripheral Venous Cannulas (PVC) should have an integrated tubing.
A VAD care plan should be commenced as soon as possible after VAD insertion. PVCs must be checked once per shift, or twice per day. Central Venous Catheters (CVC) must be checked once per day. The VAD care plan must be fully completed to ensure optimal practice to avoid patient harm.
The Infection Prevention and Control Team (IPCT) are working in conjunction with Practice Development to ensure that staff are supported and have the knowledge and skills to care for a patient with a urethral urinary catheter.
PVC/CVC
VAD Care Plans
Vascular Access Devices (VADs)
Urethral Urinary Catheter Care Hub
The UUC Hub is where you will find all of our information and resources concerning Urethral Urinary Catheters.
Many of our patients will require an indwelling urinary catheter to be inserted during their stay in hospital. It is important that staff involved in the insertion and maintenance of these devices have access to training and guidance to ensure the comfort and safety of their patient.
NHSGGC Documents
Links to urinary catheter guidelines can be found at:
- Male urethral catheterisation Competency booklet
- Urinary Catheterisation for Adults Clinical Guideline
- Staphylococcus Aureus Bacteraemia (SAB) Guidelines on Management in Adults
UUC guidance for Acute in-patients is under development.
Catheter Passport
The National Catheter Passport (NCP) is an information resource given to patients and was created to improve both care and communication around urinary catheters.
National Catheter Passport (NCP)
Guidance for the use of the National Catheter Passport
Staff can order the National Catheter Passport via PECOS (SKU code 223848) whenever they order their supply of catheters and should be used once the decision has been made for the catheter to remain in situ – this may be on discharge from hospital or whilst at home.
Education
Staff caring for a patient who requires an indwelling urethral urinary catheter should complete the NES module entitled ‘Urinary catheterisation’. Staff should log in to LearnPro NHS and add the NES Urinary catheterisation to their programme.
HEI
The Healthcare environment inspection team may visit your ward to inspect the care and maintenance of these devices. Published on the HEI website are the methodology and inspection aide memoir. We recommend that staff familiarise themselves with these two documents.
NHSGGC Infection Prevention and Control Team
The IPCT have developed a tool to measure compliance with the urethral urinary catheter care plan. This tool can be used by staff to measure their own ward compliance.