As the global authority in infusion therapy, INS is dedicated to setting the standard for infusion care. One of the ways we carry out our mission is by developing and disseminating the Infusion Therapy Standards of Practice,1 which is revised every 5 years supported by the most current research, advances in science, and innovations in technology applicable to the specialty based on strength of evidence.
The preeminence of the Standards is recognized by infusion professionals around the world, and it forms the foundation of our common practice. I recently returned from a trip to Central and Latin America, where I led a series of live programs and Webcasts reviewing the 2016 Standards with large audiences of nurses, physicians, and pharmacists in Colombia, Brazil, Peru, and Mexico. Our comprehensive discussions focused on the methodology of its development, bringing evidence into clinical practice, and the application of the Standards in optimizing infusion care.
While in Colombia, I also met with members of the Colombian Association of Intravascular Therapy, 1 of INS' 10 international affiliates. These are professional nursing groups outside the United States who share an interest in the specialty practice of infusion therapy. Through these relationships, INS works to bring advances in the specialty to practitioners and to patients around the world who require infusion therapy.
Following INS 2016, I will travel to China, one of the countries most interested and involved in infusion care in the world. I've had the honor of visiting there many times beginning in 1999. There, Lisa Gorski, INS Standards of Practice Committee chair, and I will lead a series of programs in 5 cities-Beijing, Xi'an, Jinan, Shanghai, and Guangzhou-where attendance is expected to exceed 200 infusion professionals from each region. Roundtables with some 20 regional nursing association leaders and/or hospital visits are also planned. The focus of our discussions will be the Standards and its implications to China's infusion practice.
While it's vital to recognize the breadth of the research that supports the 2016 Standards (as many have noted, it cites 350 more references than the 2011 edition2(p13)), it may be more revealing to know that increasingly research from around the world supports the Standards-from just a few references in 2011 to many more in 2016. And as you may know, the Standards is now accessible to infusion professionals in some of the world's major languages, including Mandarin, Japanese, Spanish, and Russian. It is also available in India.
The Standards is a powerful document, a touchstone for infusion professionals everywhere, a document without borders. Through its development, dissemination, and application, the Standards has an impact on patients close to home and far away.
As our world gets smaller and we are all more connected globally, we need to help our colleagues around the world incorporate the Standards into their clinical practice. Just as the Standards is a document without borders, so too, is the commitment of all infusion specialists to the best possible patient care.
Mary Alexander
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