Developing a research base for Intravenous Peripheral catheter resites: the DRIP Trial

INTERVENTION: Patients in this study are generic medical/surgical/oncology hospitalised patients who require a peripheral intravenous device. Patients will have their peripheral intravenous devices (IVs) removed after 72‐96 hours of use a new IV resited in another vein. This will continue for the course of IV therapy, that is as long as IV therapy is required. CONDITION: phlebitis PRIMARY OUTCOME: Phlebitis during catheterisation or up to 48 hours after catheter removal. Phlebitis defined as 2 or more of: pain, tenderness, erythema, swelling, purulence, and/or palpable venous cord. SECONDARY OUTCOME: Catheter related bloodstream infection: Bacteremia/fungemia with more than 1 positive blood culture obtained from a peripheral vein, clinical manifestations of infections (i.e.fever, chills, and/or hypotension), and no apparent source for the BSI except the catheter. One of the following should be present: a positive semiquantitative (>15 colony forming units(CFU) /catheter segment) or quantitative (>103 CFU/catheter segment catheter) ; culture whereby the same organism (species and antibiogram) is isolated from the catheter segment and peripheral blood; simultaneous quantitative blood cultures with a >5:1 ratio IV versus peripheral; differential period of IV culture versus peripheral blood culture positivity of >2 hours. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Scheduled or expected to have a peripheral IV in situ for 4 days or more, written informed consent