Re: Pens or Multi-dose Vials in an Inpatient Setting?
Judy,
A few years ago, in the hospital where I worked, we were told that each patient had to have their own vial of insulin. I was under the impression that it was a Joint Commission standard. I did some research at that time and the avg. amount of insulin used per patient in our hospital was 150-200 units per hospital stay. So I did a cost analysis and discovered that the cost between pen and pen needle would be about the same as vial and syringe when you consider how much insulin is wasted in the vial. The insulin cost was actually much lower in the pen but the safety pen needles were 2.5 times the cost of a syringe. An added benefit to the pens is a decreased risk for accidental needle sticks. So we went to pens for the entire hospital (except ER had stock Regular).
Now, I am told that hospital is switching back to vials and syringe because of the cost. They are actually going to floor stock insulin--the very thing you are trying to get away from. If you use floor stock insulin, vial and syringe is less costly than pens.
Incidentally, we used Lantus and NovoLog so I came up with a memory tool for patients and staff to help them remember how each insulin worked:
Lantus Lasts the Longest, Largest dose, Light (gray) pen.
Novolog (pen) is Navy and is Needed with Nutrition.
One advantage to the pens is the fact that many patients came into the hospital with uncontolled BG and often times reluctant to start insulin. But when they saw the pens many would say, "Oh, I could do that". We wrote a lot of discharge orders using the insulin pens.
Roxy
