The World Health Organization (WHO) has unveiled global guidelines aimed at curbing the prevalence of bloodstream and other infections stemming from the use of catheters in minor blood vessels during medical procedures.
Poor practices in catheter insertion, maintenance, and removal pose significant risks of introducing pathogens directly into the bloodstream, potentially leading to severe conditions such as sepsis and challenging complications in vital organs like the brain and kidneys.
Additionally, soft tissue infections at the catheter insertion site are also a concern.
The newly released guidelines encompass 14 good practice statements and 23 recommendations addressing key areas for healthcare workers, including education and training, aseptic techniques, hand hygiene practices, catheter insertion, maintenance, access, removal, and selection.
Here’s a summary of the key recommendations and good practice statements:
Statistics indicate that up to 70% of hospitalized patients require catheterization in peripheral veins or arteries, commonly referred to as peripherally inserted catheters (PIVCs), during their hospital stays.
Dr. Bruce Aylward, WHO Assistant Director-General for Universal Health Coverage, Life Course, emphasized the preventable nature of infections linked to healthcare delivery, describing them as both tragic and a serious threat to healthcare quality and safety.
Aylward stressed the critical importance of implementing clean care and infection prevention and control recommendations to save lives and mitigate unnecessary suffering worldwide.
Developing and implementing guidance to prevent the spread of such infections has been a focal point for WHO.