Haematology happy hour: Alcohol disinfection caps and PICC associated BSI
Joel Collins1, Marija JurajaKristy EkersDiana LaganaMirela Russo , 1CALHN, Adelaide, South Austraila, Australia
Background
An increased incidence of Peripheral Intravenous Central Catheter (PICC) associated blood stream infection (BSI) was detected in our hospital in patients with haematological malignancies. ADC for needleless connectors were introduced in this patient group with the intent to prevent BSI.
Method
From April 2021, any inpatient with a PICC insitu or requiring a PICC insertion, had ADC secured to the needleless connector/s. ADC were not supplied to outpatients or on discharge. ADC replaced scrubbing the hub and if not in use, remained insitu for up to seven days. Compliance auditing, along with retrospective and prospective PICC associated BSI surveillance data, allowed for the comparison of BSI before and after implementation.
Results
For the first 16 months post implementation a decrease in the number of PICC associated BSI was detected in our patient group. Predominant organisms causing infection i.e. Staphylococcus species, also decreased in number. Of those patients who developed BSI, 43% had an ADC insitu for the entire dwell time and 57% for some of the time.
Conclusion
ADC offer an alternative method to disinfect needleless connectors and decreased nursing time. They may help reduce BSI in high-risk haematology inpatients. We detected a decrease in PICC associated BSI. Further analysis is required to determine their clinical benefit and if their use in community patients with PICC lines could help reduce BSI in future.
Biography
Diana Lagana is a Microbiologist in the Central Adelaide Local Health Network (CALHN) Infection Prevention and Control Unit (IPCU). Diana has over 20 year of experience in public and private microbiology laboratories and 10 years in IPCU. Diana strongly contributes to infection prevention via outbreak management, healthcare cleaning, disinfection and facility quality control, as well as surveillance and investigation of bloodstream infections.
Joel Collins is a Nurse Consultant in the CALHN IPCU. Joel has a background in emergency nursing and infection prevention and control nursing. Notable contribution in recent years has been through education and the pursuit of quality improvement.