Endotracheal suctioning via the tracheostomy tube

Sterile suctioning as needed with a tracheostomy tube in place, with limits on suction pressure and time — an airway emergency skill that carries a lot of weight in the exam.

Content created with AI assistance from public clinical sources (RKI, AWMF) – may contain mistakes; if in doubt, your textbook is right

Translated from the German original, which is authoritative. The exam itself is in German.

Material

• Working suction unit with suction regulator, connecting tubing
• Sterile single-use suction catheters of a suitable size (at most half the inner diameter of the tube)
• Sterile gloves or no-touch technique, safety goggles, surgical mask, protective gown
• Rinsing fluid for the tubing, pulse oximeter, emergency set with a spare tube at the bedside

Typical mistakes in the exam

• Inserting with suction
• Suctioning for too long or with too high a suction pressure
• Using one catheter several times
• No complete emergency set at the bedside

What examiners ask afterwards

• Is a nursing assistant (Pflegehilfskraft) allowed to perform suctioning? Give your reasons.
• How do you recognise a blocked tube, and what do you do then?
• Why must the suction catheter be smaller than the tube?

Sources

• KRINKO: Prävention der nosokomialen beatmungsassoziierten Pneumonie (RKI)