Expanding access to difficult urinary catheter insertion services through a novel nurse practitioner-led team

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Nursing Practice
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Urinary catheterization is a common procedure in the US healthcare system.
• While typically straightforward, catheter placement can present challenges.
• Limited urology specialist availability created a need for expanded nursing roles.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the effectiveness of training nurse practitioners (NPs) in managing difficult urinary catheter insertions.
• To determine if an expanded NP role could reduce the demand for urology consultations.
• To improve patient outcomes and healthcare efficiency in urologic care.

Main Methods:

• A 2-step training program was developed for 15 Rapid Response Team NPs.
• NPs received specialized training to enhance skills in urinary catheter insertion for complex cases.
• The NPs' role was expanded to include consultations for challenging catheter placements.

Main Results:

• The NP team received 391 consults for urinary catheter insertions.
• A significant portion, 73 (18.7%), of these consults still required follow-up by the urology service.
• This indicates a substantial caseload managed by the NPs, with a portion still needing specialist intervention.

Conclusions:

• The NP-led urinary catheterization program shows potential for reducing complications and hospital length of stay.
• Expanding the scope of practice for NPs in urology can optimize resource utilization.
• Further evaluation is warranted to fully quantify the benefits of this enhanced nursing role.