Chronic venous access: bedside placement technique and complications.
Long-term tunneled venous access catheters have evolved into safe and useful tools. More than 80% of these are implanted in patients in operating rooms with fluoroscopic and anesthesia support. This article describes a technique for safely placing these catheters at the patient's bedside and focuses on how to identify, prevent, and manage common complications associated with this procedure. This article also summarizes 8 years of the authors' personal experience with bedside placement and describes a hospital quality assurance study that evaluated the efficacy of bedside placement. The role of appropriately trained personnel is highlighted. The possibility of cost savings, totaling millions of dollars, is raised.
Goldfarb
P M
PM
Coldwell
D
D
D002405:Catheterization, Central Venous / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods* / Q000451:nursing; D002408:Catheters, Indwelling / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care; D010362:Patients' Rooms; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D014683:Vena Cava, Superior