October 7, 2024- Due to the impact to the Baxter International, Inc. North Cove facility in Marion, N.C. from Hurricane Helene, Vizient has published a conservation guide for adult and pediatric IV push medications. Baxter’s North Cove plant is a major producer of large volume IV fluid bags used for patient care in the U.S. The guide includes detailed information for providers, which will help conserve inventories during this time of potential supply disruption while maintaining the delivery of safe patient care.
Inventory management strategies, according to Vizient, include evaluating IV fluid supplies on a health system-wide basis and redeploy solutions to areas of greatest need, minimizing unit stock of large-volume bags to the extent possible or stock product only in critical care areas where fluids are an essential component of emergency supplies, and ensuring smaller volume bags are stocked in other supply areas.
Conservation strategies for IV fluids, according to Vizient, include actively renewing patients on IV fluids or IV medications to assess discontinuation or the ability to switch to an alternative route of administration, as clinically appropriate, utilizing oral rehydration in place of IV fluids when able, considering preparing and dispensing medications that may be administered via IV push in ready-to-administer concentrations packaged in syringes, and more.
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