Introduction

Catheter & Drain Care Safety focuses on the safe handling, maintenance, and monitoring of commonly used catheters and surgical drains to prevent avoidable harm—especially healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), blockage, leakage, accidental dislodgement, skin injury, and documentation errors. The program emphasizes evidence-based bedside practices such as aseptic technique, securement, site care, closed-system integrity, appropriate emptying and measurement, early complication recognition, and timely escalation. It is designed to build strong “device safety culture” by standardizing care bundles and reinforcing staff competency across clinical settings.

Scope

This program covers safety principles and best practices for:

• Urinary catheters (indwelling, intermittent, external devices) – safe care, maintenance, monitoring, and removal readiness
• Central/peripheral catheters and access lines (where relevant to daily care and infection prevention) – handling, hub/device protection, and complication awareness
• Surgical drains (e.g., JP drains, Hemovac, chest drains—facility-specific) – site care, drainage monitoring, and securement
• Drainage systems – maintaining closed systems, preventing backflow, safe emptying, and accurate measurement/recording
• Patient safety practices – patient education, mobility safety, skin protection, pain control basics, and escalation pathways
• Quality & compliance – documentation standards, audit checkpoints, and bundle adherence (aligned with hospital infection prevention and quality goals)

Objectives

By the end of the program, learners will be able to:

1. Apply standard precautions and aseptic technique during catheter/drain handling and care.
2. Maintain closed-system integrity and reduce contamination risks during routine practices.
3. Perform site assessment and device inspection (insertion site, dressing, securement, tubing position, patency).
4. Identify early warning signs of complications such as infection, obstruction, leakage, bleeding, dislodgement, and skin injury, and escalate appropriately.
5. Demonstrate correct procedures for emptying, measuring, and recording outputs accurately and consistently.
6. Implement practical care bundles/checklists to standardize catheter and drain safety in daily workflows.
7. Educate patients and caregivers on safe movement, hygiene, alarm signs, and device protection to reduce adverse events.

Who can enroll

This program is suitable for:

• Staff nurses (ICU, wards, OT, ER, dialysis, step-down units)
• Nursing students and interns
• Infection prevention and quality teams
• Junior doctors/residents involved in bedside device care
• OT and post-operative care teams
• Home-care nurses and caregivers (where catheter/drain care is required)
• Healthcare support staff involved in monitoring, documentation, or assisting with patient care (as per facility policy)

Study content from TERRALEAP.COM

Learners receive structured study support through TERRALEAP.COM, including:

To support learning and practical implementation, this program includes videos and PDF-based study resources provided through TERRALEAP.COM.