30. Buttonhole Evaluation Questionnaires similar to the Gold Coast (Paula McLeister’s) presentation at RSA 2006 were given to 13 buttonhole clients and also the staff who had been present pre and post buttonhole experience. This has enabled Bendigo to compare results with the Gold Coast buttonhole experience.
No doubt many of you who work in haemodialysis can relate to this cartoon. It was situations like this that lead us to explore butthole cannulation Buttonholing is not a new technique Used for homehaemo clients Used extensively in Europe for some decades Not generally been used in-centre Limited literature found on lit search Bendigo commenced in-centre buttonholing in Nov 2004 and have buttonholed 19 clients todate We use dull fistula needles after the establishment phase with the buttonhole
Rope ladder cannulation appears to be the most commonly taught method however area puncture appears to be the most common practice, especially when a difficult fistula is faced and probably more so when less experienced staff are cannulating. Tendency to follow the previous cannulation in around the same area
If buttonholing is being contemplated then the reasons why need to be examined as they will influence where the holes should be created and on what angle Support may need to be sought from the Physician or surgeon and this needs to be ongoing support
The initial clients selected had cannulation difficulties frequently required transfer to Parent Hospital to facilitate dialysis treatment Inconvenient for clients Frustrating for staff - regional & metro After establishment of buttonholing there were no cannulation issues requiring transfer to Parent Hospital
Observe and palpate fistula and plan out the areas for buttonholes and include plans for a 2 nd set of holes at a later date If the establisher not available for a cannulation episode then other staff can cannulate but must avoid the planned sites
The entire buttonhole creation is hinged on the exact same site, angle and depth – hence the need for one cannulator in the break in or establishment phase Our experience has been that establishing probably takes between 6 to 12 cannulations but is very much dependant on the fistula and client
Establishing is really no different to an ordinary cannulation except for the repeat site/angle/depth each time
Scab removing can be time consuming for some fistulas. We find soaking with alcohol chlohex for 5 minutes or more does generally help soften and aid lifting of scab
Again no different to any other cannulation
Insertion is quicker but removing scabs can take a little time Bleeding time for some problem clients has been reduced I guess because it is a clean cannulation without trauma We have buttonholed approx 20 clients in 2 years and in that time 2 clients have had fistula infections. One clients hygiene is such that infections had occurred pre buttonholing and the other client works out in dirt and dust and therefore is a candidate for infection regardless of cannulation method
Betty was our driving force to commence buttonholing She was seriously considering ceasing treatment purely because of the pain, anxiety and frustration experienced with her cannulation for her haemodialysis treatment
Fay has a short fistula which is quite soft onesititis was becoming obvious She had had some infection issues as a result of picking at her fistula when infection was present there was even more limited cannulatable areas
Fay now has very successful buttonholes She has had one episode of infection but as mentioned this was occuring pre buttoholing as well
To evaluate the effectiveness of our buttonhole program we developed questionnaires similar to the Gold Coast presentation at RSA 2006. 13 clients and 9 staff undertook the questionnaires
Firstly we asked about the good and bad things associated with the method It was reassuring to see that there was unanimous agreement that there was nothing bad about buttonholing from the patients perspective
Clients were questioned regarding pain during buttonholing & 11 of the 13 experienced less pain with the new buttonhole method
TIME - 9 Clients noted reduced time from sitting in their chair to begining their treatment and the all important time count down on the dialysis machine
11 clients stated that they experienced less anxiety with the buttonhole method of cannulation Prior to buttonholing some clients had experienced on average 2 dialysis sessions per week with cannulation troubles so anxiety had become a BIG problem
9 of the 13 clients had experienced frequent "blows" of their accesses during cannulation prior to commencing buttonholing. Following buttonholing commencement there have been NO blows for any of these clients. 7 clients commented they had reduced post bleeding times with the buttonhole method
These are some comments pulled from the questionnaires The top comment says it all for our first client as she is still dialysing. Comments like 'I am pleased I haven't got big lumps up my arm' make you realise that body image is a concern for some clients
Infection rates contry to some beliefs in the renal world we have not seen any increased fistula infections associated with our in centre buttonholing We have experienced one infection but this client had had previous fistula infections prior to buttonhole commencement We had 2 fistula infections in the non buttonhole clients over the same two year period. A Lit search could find no documented evidence of increased infection rates associated with buttonholing
Twardowski probably the most published person with regard to buttonholing todate sums up the advantages of buttonholing succinctly in this quote
9 of our staff who were present pre and post buttonholing were given questionnaires Again all the comments were positive less pain less anxiety less time to cannulate were all noted
This slide again shows staff comments like * increased confidence with difficult fistulas * decreased time troubleshooting * decreased time looking for suitable cannulation sites As a result of our buttonholing program all staff members in Bendigo regardless of experience can now cannulate every client in the unit
2 difficulties were noted by staff 1. scab removal............. remains an ongoing issue as it is individual client dependant * some scabs lift easier than others * We soak to moisten with Chlorhex soaked gauze * Scrape with the gauze or lift with a blunt drawing up needle 2. Need for careful positioning of the fistula arm to align the fistula and buttonhole tracks correctly
This client had a very deep fistula and quite fleshy arm. With a very poor cardiac & medical history the surgeons were extremely reluctant to take her back to theatre for superficialisation of the fistula. After some limited success with cannulations and an ongoing reliance on her permcath we decided to try buttonholing. We used the site rite machine in the initial stages to give a guide for needle attempts and after many agonizing sessions managed to create some buttonholes
With the thought to trying to get this client home we commenced buttonholes and self cannulation with this client
Another success with what was a short and difficult access
Left short forearm fistula about 5mm available area initially This pic shows how mushy to buttonholes can become when attempting scab removal
2 sets of sites are good if there is room for these then alternating sites is possible Education for both nurses and medical staff is very important for the acceptance of buttonholing Need to be aware that when using the dull needle the cannulation sensation for the cannulator can be different may need to push harder and there can be the trampoline effect May need to slightly rotate the needle on insertion to cut through the vessel
we acknowledge that buttonholong is not necessarily possible/suitable for all haemodialysis areas but it would be advantagous if all staff had an understanding of the principles of cannulation & management for a buttonhole and when they are not able or confident to buttonhole then to be aware to cannulate away from the buttonhole areas.
in conclusion our experience in Bendigo has shown that buttonholing ......... * has positive outcomes * is not difficult * has shown no increased fistula infection rates * has decreased stress levels for client and staff * and promotes greater client self care, autonomy & confidence
finally Anything which can potentially promote the logevity of the fistula is surely worth doing.
Betty is now a very happy lady
These are our eferences and we would like to acknowledge the clients and staff who have embraced the buttonhole program and made this presentation possible. Thanks also to the clients for allowing us to use their photos and tell their stories