title: International prevalence of the use of peripheral intravenous catheters.
abstract: Over a billion peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVCs) are inserted each year in hospitalized patients worldwide. However, international data on prevalence and management of these devices are lacking. The study assessed the prevalence of PIVCs and their management practices across different regions of the world. This global audit involved 14 hospitals across 13 countries, with 479 patients screened for the presence of a PIVC. We found 59% of patients had at least 1 PIVC in place, and 16% had other types of vascular devices. We also found that overall, 25% of patients had no vascular device in place. The majority of PIVCs were inserted by nursing staff or a specialist team. The prevalence of idle PIVCs in place with no fluid or medication orders was 16%, and 12% of PIVCs had at least 1 symptom of phlebitis.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia.|Intensive Care, Liverpool Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.|Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Evan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alexandrou
authors.affiliation: Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.|Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, Centre of Research Excellence in Nursing Interventions, Gold Coast Campus, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Gillian
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8875-7523
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ray-Barruel
authors.affiliation: Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.|Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, Centre of Research Excellence in Nursing Interventions, Gold Coast Campus, Queensland, Australia.|Emergency Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Carr
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia.|Intensive Care, Liverpool Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Frost
authors.affiliation: CareFusion, Rolle, Switzerland.|Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Sheila
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Inwood
authors.affiliation: Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Niall
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Higgins
authors.affiliation: Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Frances
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Sanatorio de Alta Complejidad Sagrado Corazón, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alberto
authors.affiliation: Rhode Island Hospital and Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA.
authors.forename: Leonard
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mermel
authors.affiliation: Alliance for Vascular Access Teaching and Research Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Centre for Health Practice Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.|Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, Centre of Research Excellence in Nursing Interventions, Gold Coast Campus, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Claire M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Rickard
mesh_terms: D002406:Catheterization, Peripheral / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002408:Catheters, Indwelling / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires