home infusions

[nonclinicalbiologist]

Hello nurses,

My son receives infusion therapy for a chronic disorder every two weeks in a pediatric infusion center. We're hoping to transition to home based infusion therapy at some point and I would love to be able to do this myself. In many countries it is common for patients to self-infuse this biological without a medical professional on hand, and I suspect it will become more so here. But I've also been trying to figure out the next phase of my life - my training is in research genetics, but I have no clinical background.

How much retraining would it take for me to become qualified to administer infusion therapy in a home setting? How many years of nursing school? Are there hierarchical levels of infusion therapy, some of which can be done by someone with a lower level of training, or do you need to be a full-on RN so you are qualified to handle complex situations as they arise?

Please excuse the naive post - I just need to know what the realistic options are. I would love to be able to work with chronic disease patients.

Linda

[IVRUS, BSN, RN]

Hello,

I am not sure what country, or where you are from, but in the USA, it is common to teach the parent or caregiver to administer IV therapy in the home.

Home infusion nurses educate on mixing the med (if needed), flushing and care of a patient's IV catheter and medication administration. Usually the nurse then observes the caregiver performing the important aspects taught once or twice to ensure compliance and understanding of all aspects needed to provide the medication in a safe and effective manner. After competency has been proven, the home care nurse then usually returns once or twice a week to draw labs, or change the dressing on an IV catheter. Most of the time, these caregivers do not have ANY clinical training prior to this. However, they should be able to understand the rationale for procedures taught, and be able to return demonstration without a hitch. The home needs to be appropriate for IV therapy: ie. have electricity, is clean, and has a working phone (land or cell) for emergencies.