Ultrasound-Guided IV placement can educe more invasive catheters in hospitalized patients

What is it about?

Peripheral IV catheters are necessary for patients admitted to the hospital. Some patients who cannot maintain a peripheral IV are given more invasive catheters called PICC lines or midline catheters. We found that these invasive catheters could be reduced if nurses underwent an abbreviated training to use ultrasound to place peripheral IV catheters at the bedside.

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Photo by Marcelo Leal on Unsplash

Photo by Marcelo Leal on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Ultrasound is increasingly available at the bedside and nurses can learn how to use it to place IVs in patients. This study found that an abbreviated training in ultrasound-guided IV placement was sufficient to allow nurses to use ultrasound effectively for IV placement