Incidence rate and the use of flushing in the prevention of obstructions of the peripheral venous catheter

Abstract

Objective: to evaluate the cumulative incidence of the peripheral venous catheter obstruction and to identify the use of flushing to prevent obstructions. Method: mixed method, with a descriptive cohort study with monitoring of 110 patients from a medical clinic in Portugal. The data collection involved interviews with 22 nurses, documentary analysis and participant observation. Thematic analysis was performed on the qualitative findings and descriptive analysis was performed for the quantitative data. Results: the cumulative incidence of obstruction was 50%. The thematic categories revealed that flushing is a nursing care for the prevention of venous catheter obstruction and is performed before and/or after the administration of the drugs. The volume of normal saline solution used in flushing ranged from 3 to 10 ml. There were also situations of non-adherence to flushing and factors that influenced this adherence, namely: the time to perform the care, the complexity and the dependence score of the patients, the workload and the number of nurses to provide care. Conclusion: flushing is a nursing care for the prevention of peripheral venous catheter obstruction, however, the nursing practices for its implementation are not uniform regarding the frequency and volume of the normal saline solution. The lack of a nursing protocol, the complexity and dependence of the patients, the workload and the number of nurses are factors that are capable of influencing the adherence to the flushing practice and, consequently, the incidence of peripheral venous catheter obstruction and patient safety and quality of care.