Timothy R. Spencer, RN, APN, DipAppSci, BHS, ICCert, VA-BC™
Consultant, Vascular Access Consultants, Scottsdale, Arizona
Tim Spencer is a Consultant in Vascular Access. Tim’s nursing background and qualifications are in Intensive Care, Clinical Nutrition and Ultrasound. Previously, Tim was the Clinical Nurse Consultant of the Central Venous Access and Parenteral Nutrition Service at the Liverpool Hospital, which he established in 1996. He has contributed to clinical research and supportive literature in promoting patient safety and improved practices and outcomes in Vascular Access.
Tim remains a Conjoint Lecturer at the University of New South Wales and is on the Editorial Review Board for the JAVA, JVA and Vascular Access. He is also a Director at Large for VACC and was the first Australian clinician to be board-certified by VACC.
He is also the Founding President of the Australian Vascular Access Society (AVAS), founded in 2009. He currently is the Presidential Advisor to the AVAS Board.Lyn Morris, BSN, RN, CRNI, VA-BC
Staff Nurse-Infusion Therapy, Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center Houston, Houston, Texas
Lyn Morris practiced nursing full-time for over 30 years, beginning her career in Pediatrics, where she honed her IV insertion skills. Twenty years ago, she moved from a position in Med/Surg to full-time Infusion Therapy. Since then, her skill set, in addition to difficult IV insertions, now includes chemo administration, PICC insertions using the modified Seldinger technique and ultrasonic guided vessel access. One area that she has developed is an affinity for is the morbidly obese patient.Technique Track
Trending Topic Sessions
Obtaining and Maintaining Vascular Access in Morbidly Obese Patients: Challenges and Strategies for Success
9/9/2014
3:45 PM - 4:45 PM
Room: National Harbor 4-5
CE Hours: 1.2
Timothy R. Spencer, RN, APN, DipAppSci, BHS, ICCert, VA-BC™
Consultant, Vascular Access Consultants, Scottsdale, Arizona
Lyn Morris, BSN, RN, CRNI, VA-BC
Staff Nurse-Infusion Therapy, Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center Houston, Houston, Texas
The challenge can begin the moment you walk into the room and find your morbidly obese patient lying in a regular bed. The number of individuals who are morbidly obese continues to rise every year, and many have multiple medical issues that result in the need for ongoing reliable IV access. This presentation looks at the anatomical differences between normal sized and morbidly obese patients, as well as strategies for successfully inserting CVADs and determining tip location on portable radiographs. This will include patient & vessel assessment, vascular access device selection, risks associated with obesity based on co-morbidities, thrombosis and clinical considerations that influence the decision-making processes in the obese.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify and evaluate the vascular access needs of the obese patient.
- Demonstrate the risks and limitations of vascular access issues in the obese patient.
- Modify clinical procedures to facilitate better vascular access needs of the obese patient.
- Determine appropriate vascular access device choices, based on clinical findings, patient assessment and clinical co-morbidites.
- Develop skills that improve the successful outcomes for device insertion based on utilizing technology and advanced skills.
- Accurately assess the need for appropriate device selection based on vessel assessment, intended therapies and clinical assessment