Sedación intravenosa en domicilio tras fracaso a la sedación subcutánea / Intravenous sedation at home after failure of subcutaneous sedation

La vía subcutánea representa la vía de elección en el manejo de los síntomas del paciente oncológico paliativo. De especial importancia en domicilio, resulta fundamental para plantear sedación en situación de agonía. Por otro lado, es habitual que el paciente oncológico dispongo de catéteres centrales de acceso periférico debido a los múltiples ciclos de medicación citostática que reciben a lo largo de su vida.Por ello, y ante la situación de fracaso a la sedación por vía subcutánea en situación de últimos días, podría plantearse como alternativa la sedación endovenosa a través de estos dispositivos, en domicilio. Esta hipótesis de trabajo se pone de manifiesta en base a nuestra experiencia de sedación intravenosa a través de reservorio venoso central (RVC) en paciente con diagnóstico de adenocarcinoma de páncreas estadio Iv en situación de agonía. La paciente falleció con buen control de síntomas y sedación completa en domicilio. (AU)

The subcutaneously pharmacological administration represents the best choice in the management of symptoms in palliative cancer patients. Specially at home, it is essential to propose sedation in a situation of agony. Also, it's common that cancer patients to have peripheral access central catheters due to the multiple cycles of cytostatic medication they receive throughout their lives.For this reason and given the situation of failure of subcutaneous sedation in agony, intravenous sedation through these devices at home could be considered as an alternative. This working hypothesis is made clear based on our experience with intravenous sedation through a central venous reservoir (CVR) in a patient diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic adenocarcinoma at the end of her life. The patient died with good control of symptoms and complete sedation at home. (AU)

Reducing bruising and pain through enhancement of subcutaneous anticoagulant injection techniques: a best practice implementation project.

INTRODUCTION: Subcutaneous delivery of anticoagulant therapy is a common treatment modality across multiple medical disciplines. However, postinjection complications of bruising and pain continues to be a problem that has the propensity to affect patients physically and psychologically. A review of literature revealed a set of recommended injection techniques that have shown to improve these clinical outcomes. OBJECTIVES: The project aims to utilize an evidence implementation framework to introduce evidence-based injection technique, for the reduction of postinjection complications. METHODS: A best practice implementation project was administered across three adult- cardiology and cardio-thoracic general wards in Singapore from March 2018 to February 2019. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI)'s framework of evidence implementation was utilized to enable change. A baseline audit was carried out to ascertain existing injection practices. Guided by the latest evidence, a new subcutaneous injection workflow was created and disseminated. Follow-up audits were held at 1 and 8-month postimplementation to assess compliance to the new subcutaneous injection workflow and the sustainment of change. Data were consolidated and analysed with the aid of JBI Practical Application of Clinical Evidence System. Barriers to change were also identified and addressed with the aid of JBI's Getting Research into Practice tool. RESULTS: A large variation of subcutaneous injection techniques was observed at the baseline audit. At 1-month postimplementation, overall compliance with the new subcutaneous injection workflow was assessed to be 73.3%. Criteria 2 and 3 of the JBI Practical Application of Clinical Evidence System audit criteria improved from the baseline values (9.1-80%; 0-93.3%). At 8-month postimplementation, compliance rate remained high (83%) following strategies to reinforce and sustain change. Participants complied to Criteria 1 at all stages of the project. Correspondingly, the incidence of bruising reduced from baseline, with a relative risk reduction of 52% (1 month) and 29% (8 months). Median pain also decreased from the baseline, with an improvement from 2.0 (1.0-3.0) to 0.0 (0.0-1.0). CONCLUSION: Introduction and sustainment of change requires careful planning and execution. JBI's framework of evidence implementation is an effective model to guide this process. This project also highlighted the value of continuous learning, clinical update and practice standardization. This is especially important in the current climate of nursing mobility worldwide and the associated practice variations based on nursing education and experience.

Qualification of palliative nursing assistance in the use of the subcutaneous route.

OBJECTIVES: to describe the experience of conducting workshops for teaching the subcutaneous fluid infusion therapy in palliative care patients. METHODS: experience report based on four workshops with a workload of nine hours each, addressing the teaching, implementation of the technique, and management in the use of subcutaneous fluid infusion therapy in patients in palliative care. The host institution was a private hospital, which had two care units in the state of Rio de Janeiro. RESULTS: we identified little knowledge about the theme. Due to the dynamics used, the workshops made it possible to qualify the participants to perform and manage the subcutaneous route in palliative care environments. CONCLUSIONS: the workshops were an important means of training, qualification, and dissemination of nursing care in a palliative care environment. The resources used to enable the qualification in the execution and management of the presented technique.

Carer administration of as-needed subcutaneous medication for breakthrough symptoms in people dying at home: the CARiAD feasibility RCT.

BACKGROUND: Most people who are dying want to be cared for at home, but only half of them achieve this. The likelihood of a home death often depends on the availability of able and willing lay carers. When people who are dying are unable to take oral medication, injectable medication is used. When top-up medication is required, a health-care professional travels to the dying person's home, which may delay symptom relief. The administration of subcutaneous medication by lay carers, although not widespread UK practice, has proven to be key in achieving better symptom control for those dying at home in other countries. OBJECTIVES: To determine if carer administration of as-needed subcutaneous medication for common breakthrough symptoms in people dying at home is feasible and acceptable in the UK, and if it would be feasible to test this intervention in a future definitive randomised controlled trial. DESIGN: We conducted a two-arm, parallel-group, individually randomised, open pilot trial of the intervention versus usual care, with a 1 : 1 allocation ratio, using convergent mixed methods. SETTING: Home-based care without 24/7 paid care provision, in three UK sites. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were dyads of adult patients and carers: patients in the last weeks of their life who wished to die at home and lay carers who were willing to be trained to give subcutaneous medication. Strict risk assessment criteria needed to be met before approach, including known history of substance abuse or carer ability to be trained to competency. INTERVENTION: Intervention-group carers received training by local nurses using a manualised training package. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Quantitative data were collected at baseline and 6-8 weeks post bereavement and via carer diaries. Interviews with carers and health-care professionals explored attitudes to, experiences of and preferences for giving subcutaneous medication and experience of trial processes. The main outcomes of interest were feasibility, acceptability, recruitment rates, attrition and selection of the most appropriate outcome measures. RESULTS: In total, 40 out of 101 eligible dyads were recruited (39.6%), which met the feasibility criterion of recruiting > 30% of eligible dyads. The expected recruitment target (≈50 dyads) was not reached, as fewer than expected participants were identified. Although the overall retention rate was 55% (22/40), this was substantially unbalanced [30% (6/20) usual care and 80% (16/20) intervention]. The feasibility criterion of > 40% retention was, therefore, considered not met. A total of 12 carers (intervention, n = 10; usual care, n = 2) and 20 health-care professionals were interviewed. The intervention was considered acceptable, feasible and safe in the small study population. The context of the feasibility study was not ideal, as district nurses were seriously overstretched and unfamiliar with research methods. A disparity in readiness to consider the intervention was demonstrated between carers and health-care professionals. Findings showed that there were methodological and ethics issues pertaining to researching last days of life care. CONCLUSION: The success of a future definitive trial is uncertain because of equivocal results in the progression criteria, particularly poor recruitment overall and a low retention rate in the usual-care group. Future work regarding the intervention should include understanding the context of UK areas where this has been adopted, ascertaining wider public views and exploring health-care professional views on burden and risk in the NHS context. There should be consideration of the need for national policy and of the most appropriate quantitative outcome measures to use. This will help to ascertain if there are unanswered questions to be studied in a trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN11211024. FUNDING: This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 24, No. 25. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

Most people in the UK would prefer to die at home, but only half of them achieve this. This usually depends on having able and willing lay carers (family or friends) to help look after them. Once swallowing is not possible, medicine is given continually under the skin (syringe driver). If common problems such as pain, vomiting or agitation break through, health-care professionals attend to give extra doses. The wait for a health-care professional to arrive can be distressing. In the UK, it is legal (but not routine) for lay carers to give needle-free subcutaneous injections themselves. We reworked an Australian carer education package for UK use. The best way to find out if this would work well is to do a randomised controlled trial. This is a test in which, at random, half of the people taking part receive 'usual care' and the other half receive the 'new care' or intervention. A pilot randomised controlled trial (a 'test' trial to see if a larger one is worth doing) was carried out to determine if lay carer injections were possible in the UK. We approached 90 dyads (a dying person and a key carer) and, of these, 40 were willing to take part and 22 completed the follow-up visit, so we could analyse their data. Of these 22 dyads, 16 were in the intervention group (lay carer injects) and six were in the control group (usual care). All carers were asked to keep a diary. Carers and health-care professionals were interviewed (qualitative study) and carer preferences were assessed. This new practice was safe, acceptable and welcomed. Carer confidence increased rapidly, symptom control was quicker and the interviews backed up these findings. Recruitment was low owing to overstretched health-care professionals. Only certain families were picked. Dyads in the usual-care group often wished they were in the intervention group. Carers found it difficult to complete some of the questionnaires that were used to measure the effect of the intervention. Therefore, uncertainty remains as to whether or not a full trial should proceed. Because the practice is already legal, some areas in the UK are already undertaking it. We plan to study what makes this practice possible or less possible to achieve.

Recovering autonomy is a key advantage of home-based immunoglobulin therapy in patients with myositis: A qualitative research study.

Immunoglobulins are 2nd or 3rd-line treatments in dermatomyositis (DM) or polymyositis (PM) refractory to high-dose corticosteroids and immunosuppressants. Immunoglobulins (2 g/kg/mo) are usually administered intravenously (IVIg) once a month and the patients stay at hospital for a few days. Recently, subcutaneous injections (SCIg) were proposed 2 to 3 times per week, in some dysimmune diseases. SCIg are administered at home preferably by the patient or by a nurse. We investigated the needs and attitudes of DM and PM patients with experience of IVIg and SCIg.Seven patients (6 PM and 1 DM) from a single center participated in a focus group (N = 6) or underwent in-depth interview (N = 1). Six had the experience of both IVIg at hospital and SCIg at home; 1 has received only IVIg at hospital. Verbatim was recorded and transcribed for further content analysis and computer-aided textual analysis.Clinical profiles and stories were heterogeneous. At diagnosis, muscle weakness, severe pain, and fatigue were at the forefront of patients' complaints impairing daily life. Patients reported considerable improvement with immunoglobulins. SCIg were described as easy, less disruptive for daily life, well tolerated, and less time-consuming. SCIg self-administration at home restored the feeling of autonomy and control.Interviews of DM and PM patients revealed that recovering autonomy and control was a central advantage of home-based SCIg that were efficient, well tolerated, and perceived as a good compromise between treatment burden and efficacy.

Práticas de medicações injetáveis: conduta referida de profissionais de enfermagem / Prácticas de medicaciones inyectables: conducta referida de los profesionales de enfermería / Injectable medications: self-reported practices of nursing professionals

RESUMO Objetivo: Identificar a conduta referida de profissionais da enfermagem, do estado de São Paulo, sobre Práticas de Medicações Injetáveis. Método: Estudo tipo survey que identificou a frequência referida sobre Práticas de Medicações Injetáveis mediante resposta de questionário eletrônico, validado, entre setembro e dezembro de 2017. Resultados: Considerando as 1.295 respostas computadas, foram identificadas inconformidades como compartilhamento de frascos multidoses para dois ou mais pacientes (10,8%), reutilização de insumos de uso único, como seringas para salinização de pacientes diferentes (1,2%) e reencape de agulhas após uso (4,9%). Foram referidas maior adesão ao uso de luvas para administração de injeções endovenosas (80,5%) e falta de treinamento para manipulação de dispositivos de segurança (13%). Dados correlacionais apontaram que, quanto maior a idade, melhor era a conduta referida na prática de injetáveis. Conclusão: Embora a maioria das condutas configure-se dentro das Boas Práticas de Medicações Injetáveis, há relatos de práticas de risco, como compartilhamento de insumos de uso único. O treinamento para uso de dispositivos de segurança ainda não é uma realidade para todos os profissionais, visto que muitos o referiram como raro.

RESUMEN Objetivo: Identificar la conducta de profesionales de enfermería del estado de São Paulo sobre Prácticas de Medicaciones Inyectables. Método: Se trata de un estudio tipo survey, el cual identificó la frecuencia de Prácticas de Medicaciones Inyectables mediante respuesta de un cuestionario electrónico, validado entre septiembre y diciembre de 2017. Resultados: Teniendo en cuenta las 1.295 respuestas computadas, se identificaron inconformidades como el uso de frascos de dosis múltiples para dos o más pacientes (10,8%), la reutilización de insumos de un solo uso, como jeringas para la salinización de diferentes pacientes (1,2%) y el reencapuchado de agujas después de su uso (4,9%). Sobresalió la adhesión al uso de guantes para las inyecciones intravenosas (80,5%) y la falta de capacitación sobre la manipulación de dispositivos de seguridad (13%). Los datos correlativos señalaron que, a mayor edad, mejor la conducta referida en la práctica de los inyectables. Conclusión: Aunque la mayoría de las conductas se configuran dentro de las Buenas Prácticas de Medicaciones Inyectables, se informa sobre la existencia de prácticas de riesgo, como el compartir insumos de un solo uso. La capacitación en el uso de dispositivos de seguridad aún no es una realidad para todos los profesionales y muchos han declarado que raramente se los entrena en esa área.

ABSTRACT Objective: To identify the self-reported injectable medications of nursing professionals in the state of São Paulo. Method: Survey study that assessed the self-reported frequency of injection medications through a validated electronic questionnaire, applied from September to December 2017. Results: The 1,295 computed responses showed non-compliances such as sharing multidose vials for two or more patients (10.8%), reusing single-use supplies, such as use of saline flush syringes for different patients (1.2%) and needle recapping after use (4.9%). Greater adherence to glove use for administration of intravenous injections (80.5%) and lack of training for handling safety devices (13%) were reported. Correlational data showed that, the older the age, the better the self-reported injecting practices. Conclusion: Although most practices are within Safe Injecting practices, there are reports of risky practices, such as sharing single-use supplies. Training for the use of safety devices is not yet a reality for all professionals, since many reported it as rare.

Time-Motion Analysis of Nurses Utilizing Insulin Pen Devices Compared to Vial and Syringe in an Inpatient Setting.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the time taken and steps completed by nurses in the process of insulin preparation and administration using the pen device compared to the vial and syringe method. METHODS: Observational and exploratory study utilizing a time-motion analysis of nurses' administration of insulin using the pen versus vial and syringe delivery methods. Nurses were observed, video-recorded, and timed during insulin preparation and administration using each delivery method. The steps performed by nurses were observed against recommended processes for preparing and administering insulin, and the percentage of nurses completing each step was noted. RESULTS: A total of 137 (94%) nurses participated. Nurses took less time preparing and administering insulin with the pen device compared with the vial and syringe method (79 ± 18 seconds vs 88 ± 20 seconds, respectively, P < .001). The overall average completion rate of steps with the pen device was 90% ± 7% compared to 88% ± 7% with the vial and syringe method. CONCLUSION: The time taken by nurses to prepare and administer insulin was lower with the pen device compared with vial and syringe. Furthermore, areas were identified for potential nursing education to enhance safe and appropriate use of insulin with both delivery methods.

Using Standardized Patients in Nursing Education: Effects on Students' Psychomotor Skill Development.

The present study used a quasi-experimental design to examine the effects of using standardized patients for the psychomotor skills development of nursing students. The performance of the experimental group in blood pressure measurement was significantly higher than that of the control group; however, there was no significant difference between the groups with regard to their administration of subcutaneous injections. The results indicated that standardized patients can be integrated into nursing education for developing psychomotor skills of students.

Manejo de la vía subcutánea en cuidados paliativos / Management of the subcutaneous way of administration in paliative care

El envejecimiento de la población, el aumento de enfermedades crónico-degenerativas, junto con una mayor esperanza de vida hacen que cada día el número de pacientes que requieren cuidados paliativos sea mayor. La vía de elección para tratar los síntomas en estos pacientes es la oral, pero ciertas circunstancias pueden imposibilitar su uso, siendo necesario recurrir a otras vías. La vía subcutánea supone una alternativa en estas situaciones al tratarse de una técnica sencilla, segura y de fácil manejo. El propósito de este trabajo es contribuir al buen uso de esta técnica y, por lo tanto, a un mejor control de los síntomas, describiendo la técnica, las ventajas y desventajas de su uso en cuidados paliativos, indicaciones y contraindicaciones, las posibles complicaciones, lugares y técnica de inserción, los cuidados posteriores, así como los tipos de administración y fármacos más empleados

The population ageing, the increase of chronic-degenerative diseases, together with a higher life expectancy, have led to an increasing number of patients who require palliative care. The administration way of choice to treat symptoms in these patients will be oral, but certain circumstances may render this impossible, making it necessary to resort to other ways. The subcutaneous way represents an alternative option in these situations, as it is a simple, safe, and easy to use technique. The objective of this paper is to contribute towards the good use of this technique and, therefore, to a better control of symptoms, describing the techniques, the advantages and disadvantages of its use in Palliative Care, indications and contraindications, potential complications, insertion sites and technique, subsequent care, as well as the most widely used types of administration and drugs

A patient care program for adjusting the autoinjector needle depth according to subcutaneous tissue thickness in patients with multiple sclerosis receiving subcutaneous injections of glatiramer acetate.

BACKGROUND: The perceived pain on injection site caused by subcutaneous (SC) self-injection may negatively affect acceptance and adherence to treatment in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Pain on injection may be caused by inaccurate injection technique, inadequate needle length adjustment, or repeated use of the same injection body area. However, information is lacking concerning the optimal needle depth to minimize the injection pain. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this program was to characterize the perceived injection-site pain associated with the use of various injection depths of the autoinjector of glatiramer acetate (GA) based on SC tissue thickness (SCT) of the injection site. METHODS: This was a pilot program performed by MS-specialized nurses in patients with MS new to GA. Patients were trained by MS nurses on the preparation and administration of SC injection and on an eight-site rotation (left and right arms, thighs, abdomen, and upper quadrant of the buttock). The needle length setting was selected based on SCT measures as follows: 4 or 6 mm for SCT < 25 mm, 6 or 8 mm for SCT between 25 and 50 mm, and 8 or 10 mm for SCT > 50 mm. Injection pain was rated using a visual analog scale (VAS) at 5- and 40-minute postinjection and during two 24-day treatment periods. RESULTS: Thirty-eight patients with MS were evaluated. The mean SCT ranged from 15.5 mm in the upper outer quadrant of the buttocks to 29.2 mm in the thighs. The mean perceived pain on injection was below 3 for all the injection sites, at both time points (5 and 40 minutes) and during both 24-day evaluation periods. The mean VAS scores were significantly greater after 5 minutes of injection compared with that reported 40-minute postinjection during both 24-day treatment periods and for all the injection areas. Mean VAS measures at 5- and 40-minute postinjection significantly decreased during the second 24-day treatment period with respect to that reported during the first 24 SC injections for all injection sites. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the adjustment of injection depth of SC GA autoinjector according to SCT of body injection areas is suitable to maintain a low degree of postinjection pain. Moreover, our results also may indicate that the use of needle lengths of 6 mm or shorter is appropriate with regard to injection pain for adult patients with MS with SCT < 50 mm.

Best practice injection technique for children and young people with diabetes.

Children and young people who manage diabetes with injection therapy are at risk of using a poor technique. This may have serious consequences, including poor glycaemic control, leading to the longer term complications of diabetes. The Forum for Injection Technique (FIT) is an international body that promotes best practice in injection technique. This article summarises the forum's UK-specific guidance, with particular reference to the nursing care of children and young people with diabetes. The FIT UK board, of which the author is a member, consists of experienced diabetes specialist nurses.

Changing practice for safe insulin administration.

Insulin is a life-saving medication but, if wrongly administered, it can cause death or severe harm. Errors in insulin administration are common, including the inappropriate use of intravenous syringes. We surveyed all clinical areas in our trust to identify types of syringes and needles available and how these were stored and distinguished from IV syringes. Based on these results, we developed recommendations to promote safety and good practice and are standardising insulin syringes throughout the trust.