title: A pilot intravenous cannulation team: an Irish perspective.
abstract: Peripheral intravenous cannulation (PIVC) is a potentially painful and distressing procedure for patients, and is traditionally carried out by medical personnel. A university hospital in Ireland was chosen to initiate a pilot intravenous (IV) cannulation team, to ascertain whether this procedure could be performed effectively by a team of nurses. The team was introduced to support the implementation of the European working time directive (EWTD). A team of four registered general nurses, led by a senior phlebotomist, provided PIVC. Request books were placed on each ward and data was recorded before and after each insertion. A constantly increasing percentage of first-time cannulation success is displayed from the first five months of the study. In-depth analysis on an orthopaedic ward reveal a preference for distal site insertion and routine change at 72 hours. IV teams performing IV cannulation can effectively reduce insertion rate attempts, and potentially offer a solution to the manpower issues arising as a result of implementation of the EWTD.
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Carr
authors.forename: Ronan W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Glynn
authors.forename: Brendan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dineen
authors.forename: Thomas Jb
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Kropmans
mesh_terms: D002404:Catheterization; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D007494:Ireland; D010348:Patient Care Team; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011787:Quality of Health Care