Home intravenous therapy and the ability to perform self-care activities of daily living.

This prospective cohort study examined the variables that affect the ability of 92 patients receiving home intravenous (IV) therapy to perform self-care activities of daily living and whether there was a difference in their ability based on vascular access device (VAD) location and type or other IV-related variables. Analysis revealed that 4 IV-related variables were significant predictors of self-care ability score: IV delivery method (beta = -.212, P = .018), VAD placement in the dominant hand (beta = -.208, P = .017), VAD dressing (beta = .215, P = .013), and IV solution (beta = .206, P = .022). These findings provide community-based nurses with evidence-based information regarding the variables that have an impact on the ability of patients receiving home IV therapy to perform the activities of daily living.