Abstract
The delivery of efficient, quality, cost-effective care is essential in today's healthcare environment. Patients with central venous catheters (CVCs) constitute a large and growing population. A method is needed to track CVC status, associated problems, and management, leading to efficiency, cost containment, and improved patient outcomes. This article describes the process of creating a CVC database at a 232-bed, tertiary, pediatric care facility that serves a five-state geographical area in the intermountain west. This database converted an ineffective, labor-intensive, paper-based system for managing catheters to an electronic format. The CVC database offers relational reports, easily retrievable information at the point of patient contact, a complete progress note with key elements, and an alert system for adverse events and infections that can be used to follow up on and determine trends of CVC activity.