Recently, a patient we will call Angela posted a note on a private Facebook page describing a troubling situation she encountered with her home IVIG infusions. She wrote to the group of fellow immune globulin (IG) patients that her infusion company decided that the nurse no longer needed to stay with her for the duration of her infusion.
Because of coronavirus infection risk, some infusion companies are apparently trying to limit the time the nurse spends in the patient’s home. The nurse is instructed to set up the infusion and stay until it had been increased to the scheduled drip rate, then she is to leave, for the rest of the day. Another patient in the group posted that her nurse didn’t leave, but she spent most of the time of the infusion sitting in her car outside the house.
“My infusions take basically eight hours, and she will be here for two of them,” Angela posted. “She’s going to teach my husband how to draw and administer diphenhydramine [an antihistamine used to counteract an allergic reaction, also known as Benadryl] in case of an emergency. I am nervous for sure. What will we do if air gets in the line? What will we do if something goes wrong?”
Angela’s concerns are not unfounded. Leaving the patient during an infusion can be dangerous and violates strict standards of care established by the Immune Globulin National Society (IgNS), an organization of Ig therapy professionals.
“As nurses, our duty is to provide safe and effective nursing care,” says Brittany Isaacs, RN, IgCN, Director of Nursing at CSI Pharmacy. “Our nursing judgement should not be clouded by situations that place a patient or their safety in jeopardy. Our duty is to do no harm, so we need to protect both the patient and ourselves during any encounter. Ensuring proper personal protective equipment is donned to keep everyone safe and following the guidelines outlined by the CDC, WHO, IgNS, and the Infusion Nurses Society allows a nurse to continue to provide safe and effective nursing care during home infusions.”
While COVID-19 has caused many changes in healthcare protocols, patient safety should always be the ultimate guiding principle. The following guidelines are drawn from IgNS’s Immune Globulin Standards of Practice and COVID-19 Resource Guide and FAQ.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, patients receiving in-home immune globulin therapy can expect the following from their specialty pharmacy or home infusion company:
- Pharmacy personnel will wear personal protective equipment while packing the medications and supplies that are sent to the patient’s home.
- The home infusion nurse will be screened by their company for COVID-19 symptoms to ensure they will not carry infection into the patient’s home.
- Patients will be screened to ensure they do not have COVID-19 symptoms before being infused.
- Nurses will wear personal protective equipment, including masks, gown, gloves, and face protection, while in the home.
- Social distancing should be maintained to the extent possible, except when providing direct patient care.
- Patients should wear a mask or face covering while the nurse is in the home.
- Patients can request that their specialty pharmacy include masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer in their IG shipment.
The following practices are not acceptable, even during COVID-19 restrictions:
- Neither the patient nor a family member should be taught to self-infuse IVIG or to remove the IV after the infusion is completed.
- The infusion nurse should never leave the home for any reason while the infusion is in process. This includes sitting in her/his car outside of the home during the infusion.
- Family members should not be asked to leave the home during the infusion.
- Nurses should never refuse to wear personal protective equipment.
If you are uncomfortable or do not feel safe with your infusion company’s changes in protocol, please do not stop treatment! Staying on therapy is vital. If your company is unwilling to adhere to these standards of care, you may want to consider changing companies. If you need help with this, CSI Pharmacy’s patient advocates can help, even if you are not our patient.
Additional resources can be found here:
Infusion therapy standards of practice. Journal of Infusion Nursing
Immune Globulin National Society – Standards and guides
The role of an IG infusion nurse. IG Living Magazine. August/September 2013
National Home Infusion Association
IDF guide for nurses: Immunoglobulin therapy for primary immunodeficiency diseases Immune Deficiency Foundation
