How to prevent a clot during your patients hospital stay – your patient leaflet

Arjo have created a VTE prevention leaflet which provides information for patients on why they are at more risk of developing a clot and how they, along with their healthcare team, can prevent the risk of clots developing. 

To help raise awareness and ultimately help reduce VTE events in your facility you can download the patient leaflet here 
Download Patient Leaflet
 
Why a patient leaflet is so valuable in supporting VTE prevention

It is estimated that VTE events are one of the leading causes of preventable death for hospitalised patients1 with statistics showing that a pulmonary embolism accounts for 7% of total hospital deaths every year2. In order to improve the utilisation of adequate VTE risk assessment and prophylaxis, clinicians and patients need to become more aware of the largely preventable nature of VTE3.

Recent research collected through patient surveys has shown that only 50% of patients were aware of the signs and symptoms of a VTE event which highlighted the need to ensure both verbal and written VTE information is routinely provided on admission and discharge4. The most frequently documented reason for non-administration of prescribed VTE prophylaxis is patient refusal5 with missed doses associated with VTE events and preventable patient harm. Individualised patient education sessions have been proven effective by increasing adherence to prophylactic therapy and reducing the amount of patients refusing VTE preventative measures6,7.

In 2018, the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care released the Venous Thromboembolism Prevention Clinical Care Standard with the objective to reduce avoidable death caused by hospital-acquired VTE. Within this standard, it was outlined the importance of patients receiving information about VTE events, their risk and how they can be adequately prevented6.

VTE standards
3 3. Inform and partner with patients
To help facilitate this initiative, Arjo have created a VTE prevention leaflet which provides information for patients on why they are at more risk of developing a clot and how they, along with their healthcare team, can prevent the risk of clots developing.
To help raise awareness and ultimately help reduce VTE events in your facility you can download the patient leaflet here 
Download Patient Leaflet
Contact us to find out how Arjo can support you by providing education for consumer and clinicians.

Contact us

To learn more about Arjo VTE prevention solutions go to -
VTE Prevention Solutions
 

To review the Commissions clinical care standards go to - https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/clinical-care-standards/venous-thromboembolism-prevention-clinical-care-standard

 

 

References:

  1. Wendelboe A, McCumber M, Hylek E, Buller H, Weitz J, Raskob G. (2015). Global public awareness of venous thromboembolism. J Thromb Haemost. 13(8):1365–71.
  2. Shiraev TP, Omari A, Rushworth RL. Trends in pulmonary embolism morbidity and mortality in Australia. Thromb Res. 2013; 132(1):19–25.
  3. Clinical Excellence Commission (2015). Clinical Focus Report: Hospital-Associated Venous Thromboembolism. Retrieved from: http://cec.health.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/278612/Clinical-Focus-Report-Hospital-Associated-Venous-Thromboembolism.pdf
  4. Greenall R (2016) Using patient education to reduce risk of VTE. Nursing Times; 12: online issue 3, 5-8.
  5. Popoola, V., Lau, B., Shihab, H., Farrow, N., Shaffer, D., Hobson, D., Kulik,S., Zaruba, P., Shermock, K., Kraus, P., Pronovost, P., Streiff, M & Haut, E. (2016). Patient Preferences for Receiving Education on Venous Thromboembolism Prevention – A Survey of Stakeholder Organizations. Published online 2016 Mar 31. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152084
  6. Sato, L., Geraci, M., Anderson, R., Cho, S., Van P. (2014). Correlation of Missed Doses of Enoxaparin with Increased Incidence of Deep Vein Thrombosis in Trauma and General Surgery Patients. JAMA Surgery. 2014;149:365–370. 10.1001/jamasurg.2013.3963
  7. Haut ER, Lau BD, Kraus PS, Hobson DB, Maheshwari B, Pronovost PJ, et al. Preventability of Hospital-Acquired Venous Thromboembolism. JAMA Surgery. Retrieved from: https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(11)00853-9/pdf
  8. ACSQHC (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care) 2018. Venous thromboembolism prevention clinical care standard. Sydney: ACSQHC