Hospital Pre-discharge Education Improves Home Infusion Outcomes, Option Care Study Shows
By: Option Care
June 12, 2017
Anti-infective Home Infusion Patients Who Receive RN-provided Education Less Likely to be Readmitted to Hospital, Experience Therapy Disruption, Suggests Research Presented at NHIA Meeting
BANNOCKBURN, Ill., June 12, 2017 — Patients have better outcomes when provided IV antibiotics home infusion education prior to discharge from the hospital, suggests Option Care data presented at the 2017 National Home Infusion Association (NHIA) Annual Conference & Exposition. Patients who received pre-discharge education from a registered nurse clinical liaison were less likely to experience disruptions in home infusion therapy, go to the emergency room or be readmitted to the hospital, the study found.
While hospitals provide general pre-discharge education, it typically covers everything related to leaving the hospital, including oral medications and follow-up appointments, and may only briefly address home infusion. Often the hospital nurse providing the education has limited knowledge of home infusion and therefore may not provide adequate information to prepare the patient. Conversely, a home infusion clinical liaison nurse visits the patient several days before the scheduled discharge to fully explain and demonstrate home infusion care and, when possible, makes additional visits to be sure questions are answered and all caregivers understand the directions.
“The home infusion clinical liaison really helps ease patients’ fears and better prepare them to comfortably and successfully receive home infusion,” said Nora Bondi, RN, lead author of the study and Option Care’s senior director of operations for North Carolina. “Clinical liaison pre-discharge education is a vital aspect of Option Care’s comprehensive high-touch, high-quality care, which helps ensure patients have more successful outcomes. “
The study compared outcomes of 60 patients who received pre-discharge education, to 37 patients who did not (patients sometimes are hospitalized briefly and released too quickly to receive pre-discharge education). [*]Bondi N and Stancil H. Pre-discharge education by registered nurse clinical liaison improves home infusion outcomes in adult intravenous IV antibiotics therapy patients. Poster presented at the 2017 National Home Infusion Association (NHIA) Annual Conference & Exposition: May 22-25, 2017; Orlando. Outcomes improved by 20 percent overall among patients who received pre-discharge education vs. those who did not. Specifically:
- Made after-hours calls (such as for technical questions/concerns related to therapy, pump or IV access) or experienced interruptions in therapy: 3 percent of patients who received pre-discharge education vs. 51 percent of those who did not.
- Readmitted to the hospital or visited the emergency room: 20 percent of patients who received pre-discharge education vs. 48 percent of those who did not.
- Completed therapy without intervention: 68 percent of patients who received pre-discharge education vs. 48 percent of those who did not.
Pre-discharge education provided by the home infusion clinical liaison nurse includes: demonstrating proper handwashing and clean technique for therapy administration in an effort to prevent infection; explaining appropriate care of the medication (such as refrigeration); showing how to care for the intravenous (IV) line and how to monitor for signs of infection; demonstrating how to flush the IV line; demonstrating the actual pump or device to be used in home infusion; and reviewing the medication schedule.
Anti-infectives — including antibiotics, antivirals and antifungals to treat a wide range of infections and infectious diseases — are the most common indication for home infusion therapy.
About Option Care
Option Care Enterprises, Inc. (Option Care) is one of the nation’s largest and most trusted providers of home and alternate treatment site infusion services. An industry leader, the company draws on nearly 40 years of clinical care experience to offer patient-centered therapy management. Option Care’s signature Home Infusion Plus services include the clinical management of infusion medicines, nursing support and care coordination. Option Care’s multidisciplinary team of more than 1,800 clinicians — including pharmacists, nurses and dietitians — are able to provide home infusion service coverage for nearly all patients across the United States needing treatment for complex and chronic conditions. Learn more at www.OptionCare.com.
Media Contact Information:
Lauren Kotarski
312-558-1770
LKotarski@pcipr.com
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