TPN update: making each visit count.

Caring for patients on TPN is a challenge for the home care nurse. These patients may present with either a short- or long-term need for TPN but in either case, the impact on daily life related to administration and monitoring of this complex infusion therapy is significant for both patients and their caregivers. The risks and complications of TPN can be serious. Nurses must possess expert knowledge of TPN administration and a high level of competence in assessment and monitoring of patients on TPN. Patients and caregivers will learn technical procedures in the home that produce anxiety in graduate nurses! The nurse must also possess skill and confidence in teaching patients to effectively administer, manage, and incorporate TPN infusion therapy into their lives.