Extension of Intravenous Tubing and Pumps Outside Rooms for Safety and Efficiency

Intensive care unit (ICU) nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 must be careful to protect themselves against contagion and prevent the spread of the virus to others. In our ICU, a patient with COVID-19 is housed in a single room and requires isolation precautions. A nurse may go into and out of the room multiple times during a single shift to manage and administer intravenous (IV) fluids and medications, change dosages, add or discontinue a medication, and manage pump alarms.

In April 2020, as hospitalization of patients with COVID-19 was increasing, our nurses heard about a program that allowed IV pumps to be maintained outside patient rooms. The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) has mentioned IV pumps in the hallway twice in its newsletters, in the context of concerns about COVID-19 spreading from patient to patient or from patients to staff and of having an adequate supply of personal...