PICC dressing chage after placement

Nurse Kyles, BSN, RN · Jun 30, 2012

At my facility it is protocol to change the dressing the next day after placement and then every 7 days there after. Our radiology department that places PICCs does not put biopatches on, and we so we do that at the 24 hour mark and with every other dressing change.

iluvivt, BSN, RN · Jul 1, 2012

There is NO current recommendation or best practice guideline that states that a PICC dressing must be changed 24 hours after insertion or the next day. There are various policies but if the following general guidelines are used they are all acceptable.

1 Any dressing that is NOT clean,dry and intact should be changed as soon as possible.

2. If any gauze is used under a transparent semipermeable membrane dressing it needs to be changed no later than 48 hours after it has been dressed.

2 If you are using a CHG impregnated patch or a TSM dressing with a CHG integrated patch or like product it should be changed at least ever 7 days.

3. If you are using Bioseal the dressing should probably be not changed the next day unless it id loose wet, or solied. The bioseal promoted hemostasis and if the site was oozing and now has been sealed with the bioseal..if you pick it off..it may start oozing again.

4 You at least want to change any TSM dressing at least every 7 days...more frequently is OK too. Same for the caps or LADS or NCs whatever you want to call the

5 if your place of employment wants you to change the dressing the next day....that is fine too...but if there is a biopatch or bioseal at teh insertion site and the dressing is CDI there is really no point. Years and years ago..we did this b/c they tended to ooze more and we did not have all the tools we have now to minimize or prevent this. We now have microintoducers...reverse taper designs...hemostasis products..and better evidenced based practices.