How to Use the Abbott PMP

The Abbott Pain Management Provider is a single-channeled, ambulatory pump designed by both Abbott Laboratories and Chicago's Rush University Medical Center to deliver analgesia to patients in hospitals, outpatient treatment centers, or at home. The Abbott PMP system includes an infuser, a color-coded epidural administration set, a catheter and anesthesia trays.

Instructions

• 1

  Administer pain medications through a small catheter placed in the epidural space that lies outside the patient's spinal cord. The pain medication will then attach to pain receptors in the spinal cord. Pain impulses begin in nerves in the skin and travel from the spinal cord to the brain, where the pain impulse is perceived by the patient. However, epidural analgesia interrupts the patient's sensation of pain before it arrives in the brain.

• 2

  Use the modes on the Abbott PMP pump to control usage for epidurals or patient controlled analgesia. Select the mode that you prefer for drug delivery. Choose from three options or techniques: continuous; continuous with boluses; or boluses-on-demand only. The rate of fluid flow should be equal to or fewer than 25 mL per hour. Continuous delivery allows you to avoid peaks and valleys that are known to occur with intermittent or continuous with bolus technique.

• 3

  Adjust the Abbott PMP to a rate of delivery ranging from 0.1 mL to 25 mL per hour in 0.1 mL increments. A clinician can experience the compatibility of the PMP will all types of drug concentrations, for maximum flexibility.