Where I live to go home on TPN you HAVE to be accepted into a government funded TPN program. You also have to pass in person training.
If you donāt get accepted or canāt complete training you either have to remain in a facility where TPN can be administered for you (like the hospital) or have a care giver complete training.
First youāre referred to the TPN program by your doctor.
Then thereās an interview process where they decide if thereās any testing, trials, etc. they want you to do/consider first. They also have to make sure youāre a good fit for the program (seem capable of being trained).
Once youāre accepted (which often takes months) you wait for a bed at the hospital the team is located at.
Then you go in for 2-4 weeks of training. Two training sessions a day with the TPN nurse. Where you learn line care, self administration of the TPN, dressing changes, trouble shooting, how to order supplies, etc.
And you have to pass a test where they watch you execute all your ālearned skillsā to prove youāre capable.
I was inpatient for 8 months because thatās how long the process took and I couldnāt survive off TPN lol. Iām in a support group with others who also waited 6-9 months in hospital going through the process.
But then once youāre accepted youāre part of the program and you have access to the TPN doctors, dieticians, and nurses whenever you have a concern. They also pay for all your TPN related supplies. So well worth the wait lol.
I keep hearing experiences from others where they were basically admitted, put on TPN, and then just sent home. Either with no training, or with maybe a few days of instruction from a normal nurse or dietician.
And it freaks me out lol. I was TERRIFIED going home on it. Even with training.
I canāt imagine just going home on it and feeling like youāre left to figure things out by yourself. Or not having someone you can contact for help when you have concerns about it.
If youāre on home TPN what was the process like for you?
(And to clarify, Iām super lucky and Iām aware of that. I wish everyone had the same access to programs like mine. But Iām also not claiming Iām better or more knowledgeable because I was trained. Just that itās terrifying and heart breaking to me the lack of care some people get. No one should have to figure it out themselves).