Antimicrobial Dosing Error in Intermittent & Continuous Hemodialysis

Antibiotic drugs are the most frequently prescribed medications among hospitalized patients for life-saving purposes, mainly in immunocompromised patient, like in patient with end stage renal disease on hemodialysis (HD) or those who had documented bacterial infection. Antibiotics disposition and their pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics properties are affected in hemodialysis patient which increases the number of antibiotics dosing errors. Several epidemiological studies found that the majority of medication error related to antibiotics occurred during the prescribing phase (30.8%). However, there is missing data about the prevalence of errors in antibiotics dosing in HD patients.

Solutes removal characteristics at various effluent rates during different continuous renal replacement therapy modalities

Background:Some studies suggest the effluent as a surrogate solute removal indicator in continuous hemodialysis or hemofiltration, but the delivered clearance is frequently smaller than prescribed. This study aims at testing whether the effluent, represented by mL/kg/h, could measure solute clearance and whether increasing effluent increases clearance proportionately in continuous hemodialysis or hemofiltration.Methods:Patients treated with continuous renal replacement therapy for various diagnoses were included. The range of dialysate flow rate or substitution fluid flow rate was 1–5 L/h; solutes in the effluent and in the plasma entering the filter were measured, and the ratio of solutes in the effluent and in the plasma entering the filter and the clearance of blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, phosphate, and β2-microglobulin were calculated.Results:The ratio of solutes in the effluent and in the plasma entering the filter showed a decreasing trend with increased dialysate flow rate or substitution fluid flow rate ( p < 0.05), but solute clearance showed an increasing trend. The increase in solute clearance was less than expected from the increased effluent ( p < 0.01), and actual delivered clearance was always below the corresponding prescribed clearance ( p < 0.001).Conclusion:With increasing prescribed clearance of continuous renal replacement therapy, effluent rate overestimated the delivered clearance.

Training of intensive care nurses to handle continuous hemodialysis: a latent condition for safety

ABSTRACT Objective: To analyze the repercussions of the training of nurses working in the Intensive Care Unit for the management of continuous hemodialysis regarding the safety of critical patients with acute renal failure. Method: Qualitative research developed considering James Reason's reference in the Intensive Care Unit of a private hospital. The data was collected with 23 nurses who worked for more than three months in the management of continuous hemodialysis through a semi-structured interview, and analyzed with the thematic content analysis technique. Results: There are weaknesses in the training of intensive care nurses for the management of continuous hemodialysis that become a latent failure. Such a failure results in difficulties in handling hemodialysis, with risks for these professionals to commit active failures. Final considerations: The training program in service for the management of continuous hemodialysis must be perfected, to develop skills and competencies in nurses and improve their performance.

EXPERIENCE OF NURSES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CONTINUOUS HEMODIALYSIS AND ITS INFLUENCES ON PATIENT SAFETY

ABSTRACT Objective: to analyze the professional experience of intensive care nurses and its influence on their work activities in the continuous hemodialysis process and patient safety in the intensive care unit within the scope of the collaborative model. Method: qualitative and exploratory research, based on the systemic paradigm of patient safety, developed at the Intensive Care Unit of a private institution in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. There were 23 nurse participants who had been working for more than three months in study scenery and in direct contact with continuous hemodialysis. The data were produced from June to October of 2016 by means of observation, analyzed using thick description as well as semi-structured interviews, and then submitted to the content analysis technique. Results: were organized in two categories: the first one portrays the influence of the professional working experience on the safety of nurses' performance, which verified that in relation to continuous hemodialysis, inexperienced nurses follow guidelines and manuals, without a complete evaluation of this care situation and face difficulties in the performance of everyday care. The second category demonstrates the impact of the nurse´s inexperience on the occurrence of active errors, evidencing actions that result in the occurrence of adverse events. Conclusion: the insertion of inexperienced nurses is a latent condition in the investigated system that results in the occurrence of incidents in the continuous hemodialysis process, requiring the improvement of the collaborative model through the systematic monitoring of the performance of these professionals, such as the proposal of a safety barrier.