Enteral Nutrition Connectors and Misconnections

New Enteral Connectors

In 2015 new patient end enteral connectors will be coming into the market, first on administration sets, then on syringes and then on feeding tubes. ASPEN is partnering with the Global Enteral Device Supply Association (GEDSA) and other organizations such as The Institute for Safe Medication Practices, The Joint Commission, Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, the US Food and Drug Administration, and others to provide awareness, to prepare for these changes, and to educate all stakeholders. For communication on this, visit  StayConnected.org.

Important Organizational Documents raising awareness about EN connectors:

Checklists to Prepare for New EN Connectors  

Nursing Protocol Update by ASPEN on December 18, 2014


Definition

An enteral misconnection as defined by the ASPEN. Board of Directors and Clinical Practice Committee as “An inadvertent connection between an enteral feeding system and a non-enteral system such as an intravascular line, peritoneal dialysis catheter, tracheostomy, medical gas tubing, etc.” Guenter P, Hicks RW, Simmons D, et al. Enteral feeding misconnections: a consortium position statement. Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf. 2008;34(5):285-292.



Enteral Nutrition Misconnections Literature