Rapid Rituximab: An Inpatient Pilot Project to Increase Education and Use Among Oncology Nurses
Suboptimal clinician awareness of the appropriate order set and lack of nursing education on administration guidelines led to rapid rituximab infusion administration (RRIA) being underused on an inpatient oncology unit. A quality improvement pilot project was developed to stimulate ordering RRIA, increase nursing knowledge, optimize inpatient chemotherapy admission and discharge schedules, and decrease nursing workload. Educational interventions led to a 38% increase in nurses’ comfort with RRIA, and data showed an increase to 100% use of RRIA for eligible patients. Improving nursing education and clinician awareness of how RRIA can decrease duration of infusions for patients, creates more efficient scheduling workflows and reduces nursing workload.
At a Glance:
- Development of unit-specific guidelines may stimulate increased use of RRIA.
- Improved clinician knowledge on patient eligibility and the appropriate order set for RRIA can reduce infusion duration.
- Optimizing efficiency of nursing workflows by using RRIA can result in more predictability and efficiency in chemotherapy inpatient admissions and discharge scheduling.