Infection prevention in the preparation and administration of intravenous drugs

Introduction: The preparation and administration of intravenous medications is the responsibility of the nursing team, and it is important to implement infection prevention measures, promoting greater safety and quality of care provided. Objective: To identify adherence to recommendations regarding infection prevention practices in the preparation and administration of intravenous drugs; To evaluate the practices performed by nurses for the prevention of infection in the preparation and administration of intravenous drugs. Methods: A descriptive, observational, and cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, using an observation grid with 15 nurses, totalling 45 observations. Results: Rates higher than 50% were found in relation to hand hygiene before preparing the intravenous drugs, and after its administration. In the observations carried out, some flaws in the practices were identified, namely: failure to use a compress when breaking the vial of medicine; failure to perform friction movements when disinfecting the three-way tap or anti-reflux valve; failure to comply with the drying time period before administering the drugs; failure to disinfect the neck or rubber cap of the medicine bottle; inadequate technique when handling the syringe body during dilution and aspiration of drugs. Conclusion: The need for greater investment in promoting and maintaining nurses' best practices for preventing infection in the preparation and administration of medication is evident.