Preventable medication errors affect around 500,000 hospitalized patients in the U.S. every year. A significant portion of these errors occur with intravenous (IV) smart pumps, which require a precise system setup to ensure the correct dosage of medication is delivered as ordered. If this setup is not followed accurately, the IV smart pump may administer either too much or too little medication, even while signaling that it is delivering the correct amount. To address this, a new IV pole has been designed to enhance the safety and ease of administering IV medications at the hospital bedside.

The IV pole was developed by a nurse-engineer team at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (Amherst, MA, USA) by combining their engineering and fluid dynamics expertise with clinical knowledge of critical-care nurses. his innovative pole streamlines and speeds up the setup and administration of IV medications in hospitals when using an IV pump, ultimately reducing the risk of dangerous and preventable medication errors. The idea for the pole originated from clinical observations that revealed standard IV poles often made it more difficult and time-consuming for nurses to achieve the correct IV infusion setup. A patent for this novel design is currently under review, and it features an adjustable crossbar that allows for hanging infusions. This crossbar automatically maintains the necessary height differential between the IV pump and the medication container, which is essential for ensuring accurate fluid flow.

By enhancing the efficiency of IV medication delivery, the pole reduces the need for manual adjustments. The development of this new IV pole is part of an ongoing research initiative focused on improving the safety and usability of IV smart pumps. This research aims to reduce infusion errors, optimize alarm management, and improve usability to better support clinicians working in high-pressure environments, such as the intensive care unit (ICU), where patients often require multiple IV infusions simultaneously. The team behind the project, including Karen Giuliano, nursing co-director of the Elaine Marieb Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation; Jeannine Blake, assistant professor of nursing; and Juan Jiménez, associate professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, has been recognized with an ANA Innovation Award for their work on this groundbreaking IV pole design.

“By bringing together expertise from both nursing and engineering, we are breaking barriers and reimagining how technology can support nurses and improve patient care,” said Giuliano.

“This project is a perfect example of why engineering and nursing must work together to solve real-world healthcare challenges,” added Jiménez. “Nurses bring firsthand clinical experience and deep knowledge of patient care, while engineers contribute technical expertise to design practical, effective solutions.” 

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