Publication Date

2024

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Coulter, Katie

Second Advisor

Primero, Allen

Degree Name

DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice)

Department

School of Nursing

Abstract

Blood cultures are the gold standard for the diagnosis of blood stream infections and determining proper antibiotic management. When drawing blood cultures, there is a risk of contamination which can lead to inappropriate antibiotic treatment, additional unnecessary tests, extended hospital length of stay, unwarranted admissions, and excess costs. Northwest Community Hospital’s emergency department blood culture contamination rate was 2.45%, which exceeds the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute’s national goal ofBlood culture supply bundles were introduced to staff during an education session and implemented on the unit for 8 weeks. These supply bundles were packaged for convenience to contain all the necessary supplies needed to draw a proper aseptic blood culture. The first four weeks of the intervention in June saw an increase in contamination rate to 2.68%. The last four weeks of the intervention in July saw a decrease in contamination rate to 1.60%. In August, after the intervention was finished and staff returned to their prior practices, the contamination rate increased to 2.78%. The results were not statistically significant. This project showed a clinically significant improvement in contamination rates and established a sound basis for implementing this supply process change in emergency departments.

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