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. 2023 Apr;53(3):104670.
doi: 10.1016/j.idnow.2023.104670. Epub 2023 Feb 2.

A pilot project of expert nurses for the follow-up of complex intravenous antimicrobial treatment

L Rolland  1 , A Mainguy  1 , S Boissier  1 , M Ki Zerbo  1 , A Tardivel  1 , M Sébillotte  1 , M Cailleaux  1 , S Patrat-Delon  1 , M Revest  2 , P Tattevin  3
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Free article

A pilot project of expert nurses for the follow-up of complex intravenous antimicrobial treatment

L Rolland et al. Infect Dis Now. 2023 Apr.
Free article

Abstract

Objective: To report a pilot project of expert nurses for outpatient parenteral antimicrobial treatment (OPAT) follow-up.

Methods: Three nurses with specific training on antibiotics started a state-funded programme including: i) consultations for OPAT follow-up; ii) hotline for satellite hospitals; iii) peer training. Patients' data were prospectively collected. A representative sample of patients and physicians was interviewed to learn about their opinion on the project.

Results: From December 2020 to December 2021, 118 patients (median age 66.5 years [52-75], male-to-female ratio 2.5) were enrolled, for a total of 621 consultations. Patients were mostly on OPAT for bone and joint infections (n = 76, 64 %) and cardiovascular infections (n = 16, 14 %), for a median duration of 29 days [22-57]. Eleven patients (9 %) required unplanned hospital admissions, and three experienced treatment failure. Most patients (21/22) and physicians in charge (10/10) reported a high level of satisfaction.

Conclusions: Nurses may be important actors for OPAT follow-up.

Keywords: Antimicrobial resistance; Competency building; Nurses; Outpatient parenteral antimicrobial treatment; Task delegation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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