The Development of a Procedural Guideline for Primary and Secondary Intravenous Medication Administration and the Use of Checklists in Healthcare

Procedural guidelines are used to teach nursing students the hands-on skills needed to care for patients in the clinical setting. These guidelines are presented to nursing students during their experiential lab courses throughout their education. This thesis paper describes the development of two procedural guidelines: one for administering intravenous medication through a primary line, and one for administering intravenous medication through a secondary line. These guidelines specifically state the required steps necessary to complete the respective tasks. They are written to promote safety and represent the best evidence-based practices. The goals of these guidelines are to function as teaching tools for faculty and study tools for students. They were provided to Arizona State University nursing students, currently in the College of Nursing and Health Innovation bachelors program, who had previously learned how to administer intravenous medication through a primary and secondary line without the help of any written procedure. After the summer break of 2017, an entire cohort of students refreshed their skills with the help of the procedural guidelines and found them to be user friendly and helpful in performing the skills safely and accurately. As a result, these guidelines will be used as an educational tool for future nursing students. While procedural guidelines are effective at teaching a skill for the first time, other forms of guides should be available as a reference for nurses who have already mastered the skill. The concept of checklists and their viability to promote safety and adherence to facility policies in various healthcare institutions are also discussed in this paper. Research shows that checklists have the capability to improve safety and work well for nurses who have fallen into complacency (Wiener, 1981).