Protocol for Heparin gtt, primary or secondary?

[med/oncRN]

Can anyone tell me what is "the norm" for hanging a heparin gtt as far as it being hung as primary or secondary on the pump?(no other fluids are ordered) My facility doesn't have it in writing. The last hospital I worked at always had us hang it as a primary with a secondary tko of NS. Their reasoning was that the pump would not continue with an empty bag. Where I work now it is hung either/or. I figure you need to be cautious with your rates and always double check, so does it matter?

[med/oncRN]

Thanks guys. I was pretty sure it was supposed to be primary. I had the feeling that the Heparin was supposed to be primary like I had been taught at my prior facility. Thanks for making it clear.

[firstyearstudent]

By secondary, do you mean as a piggyback? If so, I'd never run heparin that way. I'd run it through its own pump module and then attach it to flush line running NS, D5 or a compatible hydration fluid. I only ever run antibiotics as piggyback, anything else, such as electrolytes or heparin or tacrolimus, etc., I would run through its own module. That way the pump will beep when the infusion is near completion. That way the pump will beep near completion to alert you so you can make sure a new bag is added (although for heparin we usually hang 500 ml bags that are changed Q24 and we never get near the end of one). For electolyte riders we can also make sure that the line doesn't run dry so we can easily do a flush following (you can lose close to 1/4 of a dose if you don't do this, at least how our facility administers it). Also, I suspect there are fewer programming errors this way