Learning Center
Collaborative Strategies for Safe IV Therapy: Strengthening Nurse-Pharmacist Partnerships from Prescription to Infusion [virtual]
Includes a Live Web Event on 04/13/2026 at 1:30 PM (EDT)
Nurses face persistent challenges in ensuring the complete and safe delivery of infusion medications. Factors, such as infusion pump limitations, tubing configurations, and small-volume drug formulations, often result in incomplete dosing and medication waste. While this is especially critical with antineoplastic agents, the issue extends across a wide range of infusion therapies. These challenges often go unrecognized by other health care professionals, leaving nurses to manage the consequences—potentially compromising patient safety and care quality.
Interdisciplinary collaboration, particularly between nurses and pharmacists, is essential to address these barriers. By aligning workflows and understanding each other's roles, teams can reduce drug waste, improve dosing accuracy, and enhance safety in handling hazardous drugs. This presentation will offer practical strategies to optimize infusion practices, minimize patient wait times, and support safe, effective administration of both antineoplastic and supportive therapies.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, learners will be able to:
- Explain the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, particularly between nurses and pharmacists, in optimizing infusion therapy practices
- Identify strategies to align nursing and pharmacy workflows to improve dosing accuracy, reduce drug waste, and enhance safety in handling hazardous and nonhazardous drugs
- Describe the negative consequences of inaccurate administration of small volume antineoplastics and supportive care medications, as well as other medication therapies given by infusion
- Discuss 3 administration methods that minimize residual drug volume, reduce waste, and limit staff exposure to hazardous drugs
- Describe the infusion pump and tubing challenges that impact the safe and accurate administration of antineoplastic and other infused drugs
Contact Hours: 1
CRNI® RUs: 2
Mikaela Olsen, DNP, APRN-CNS, AOCNS®, FAAN
MiKaela M. Olsen, DNP, APRN-CNS, AOCNS®, FAAN, is the Clinical Program Director for Oncology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Johns Hopkins Health System. Dr Olsen works work closely with JH oncology nurse leaders, oncology physician leaders, and directly with clinical staff to ensure best practice and streamlined coordination of care throughout the Johns Hopkins Health System. She collaborates with oncology service line leadership to ensure that oncology core competencies and standards of care are consistent and harmonized throughout the Johns Hopkins Cancer service line.
Dr Olsen serves as adjunct faculty for the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing and Faculty Associate at the University of Maryland School Of Nursing. She is Co-chair of the Johns Hopkins Health System Venous Access Device Committees and central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) reduction committee. She is currently the lead editor for the 2nd edition of the Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy Guidelines and Recommendations for Practice (2023) and the Safe Handling of Hazardous Drugs 4th ed (2024). Dr Olsen has published and extensively presented on the topic of safe handling of hazardous drugs and the adverse effects for health care workers who handle these drugs.
As an instructor and consultant, Dr Olsen has traveled to countries including Singapore, UAE, China, Bulgaria, and Japan to improve nursing education related to cancer and cancer treatment and to increase awareness of HD exposure risks and safe handling.
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