Lesson Summary

Today, Dan Richman will be teaching about central line management, focusing on troubleshooting and dressing changes to boost nurses' confidence. Dan is a registered nurse with a BSN from the University of Hawaii and extensive experience in various hospital settings, teaching, and managing central lines.

• Central lines are vital for short- and long-term patient care outcomes.
• They are vascular access devices placed ideally near the collow atrial junction.
• Loss of access to central lines could have fatal consequences, especially for patients like those on dialysis.
• There are different types of central lines, including implanted ports, dialysis lines, and introducers for procedures.
• Focus will be placed on short-term non-tunneled central venous catheters and peripherally inserted central catheters.

Infections related to central lines have high costs and mortality rates. Over the years, efforts have reduced central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) significantly, yet over 20,000 CLABSI events were reported in 2021.

• Between 2008 and 2016, there was a 44% decrease in CLABSI incidents.
• From 2015 to 2021, an 8% reduction in the standardized infection ratio was noted.

During this educational session, prevention strategies for CLABSI and other complications associated with central lines will be discussed.