Using needleless intravenous access devices for administering Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN): Practice update

Needleless intravenous (IV) access devices have been introduced into many clinical settings for administering TPN and other IV fluids to decrease the risks of needle-stick injury and transmission of bloodborne pathogens. However, reports of outbreaks of bloodstream infections in patients receiving needleless devices illustrated a lack of infection-control guidelines for use of these devices, their components, and variable staff practices. Revised practice standards from the IV Nurses Society recommend rigorous infection-control practices. All components of the IV system used in administering TPN, including the needleless components, should be considered a closed system that is manipulated aseptically and changed daily.