An Innovative Educational Approach to Reducing Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections: A Case Study

Best practices for urinary catheter insertion and care are well documented in the literature. However, the development of educational methods to address best practice standards has been relatively stagnant. A novel educational approach to teach practicing providers proper catheter insertion and care was developed under a blended learning model with online videos and hands-on simulations. The education was custom created for each participant role. This education also highlighted the providers' own hospitals' catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) rates, the negative patient outcomes that have occurred as a result of CAUTIs, and the financial burdens caused by CAUTIs. Results showed a significant inverse relationship between whether the education was occurring and the number of monthly CAUTIs. The results provided evidence that engaging frontline workers in blended learning catheter care simulation education was significantly associated with a lower number of monthly CAUTIs. Other institutions can design similar educational interventions to reduce their CAUTI rates. J Contin Educ Nurs. 2016;47(10):473-476.