Abstract

A hemodialysis (HD) central venous catheter (CVC) is essential to managing renal failure, acute or chronic, and must function adequately to ensure the patient's health. Hemodialysis catheters may be tunneled for long-term needs and have large lumens to ensure adequate hemodialysis therapy. A common complication of chronic HD CVC use is an infection or a central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI). CLABSIs increase morbidity and mortality in hemodialysis patients (Conwell et al., 2019). The increased risk of infection leads to the possibility of overall worse health outcomes. 

The Joint Commission and the CDC promote the 'Scrub the Hub' protocol, which outlines the current evidence-based practice approach to accessing HD CVC ports. This practice is essential to reducing CLABSIs in those who rely on CVCs for hemodialysis treatment in outpatient chronic hemodialysis centers. Although no formal data was collected, anecdotally, a decrease in compliance was observed regarding scrubbing the hub time within a chronic hemodialysis unit. Reinforcement through education and auditing of the 'Scrub the Hub' protocol will reduce the instances of CLABSIs within the outpatient hemodialysis unit.