Antimicrobial Stewardship & Patient Safety Improvements: Introducing the NIVAS Line Flushing Guidance

<p>Recent published literature highlights that as much as 35% [1] of medication may remain in the infusion line as residual volume. The line is not commonly flushed outside of paediatric and oncology settings and therefore the total prescribed dose is not administered to patients, and this residual medication is discarded, raising the issue of underdosing. [2]</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>At Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, the Medical Device Management Services team is actively working towards improving patient safety and recovery through antimicrobial stewardship and compliance with new NIVAS guidelines [3]. We were keen to understand the implications of current intravenous administration practice at our Trust. We were particularly interested in assessing the prevalence and extent to which patients are underdosed, and the cost implications of discarded medication.</p>