The Vessel Health Preservation and Intravenous Access team - known as VIVA - were specialists at getting IV access in patients whose veins were not easy to find.
Those patients are described as Difficult Intravenous Access or DIVA.
International studies have shown that more than a third of adults and up to half of children presenting to hospital met DIVA criteria, which is characterised by non-visible and non-palpable veins.
The VIVA team was made up of a part-time associate charge nurse manager and approximately three full-time equivalent positions for registered nurses.
The aim of the VIVA team was that, by making use of the nurses' high level of inserter knowledge, experience and procedural competence, and vein location technology - such as ultrasound - to assess vessels and guide insertion, they could place a peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC) successfully on the first attempt.
The pilot ran from April 2024 to July 2025 and an impact report was completed near the end of the project to measure outcomes.
The impact report showed that, because of fewer failed PIVC insertions and fewer premature failures of PIVCs, there was a reduction in annual expenditure of $308,003 on PIVC and associated equipment.
There was also a reduction in healthcare-associated bloodstream infections (HABSI), but the report said this could have been connected to other changes.
The number of HABSI's over the period dropped by 21%, compared to the previous year, dropping from 72 to 57 cases.
The report said these results should be interpreted with caution and recognition that there were a number of factors, as there were other initiatives planned or underway at the same time that could also improve vascular access management.
It said patients requiring PIVC re-insertion experienced distress, and could have compromised blood vessels for subsequent IV therapy and problems with IV access in the future.
Before the creation of the VIVA team, if there were two failed attempts at PIVC insertion, the patient would be referred to more experienced clinicians, such as anaesthetist and nursing staff from Interventional Radiology.
The report said that responding to requests came in addition to their main roles, and was not undertaken as a pre-planned activity or their sole activity.
On June 30, a business case proposal transitioning from the pilot project to something more permanent was submitted, but the programme was ended on 31 July.
The report said ending the pilot could mean a return to delays and disruptions for patients, and delivery of therapies via peripheral vascular access, with negative impact on patient outcomes.
It said it would also increase the burden on other workers, particularly on anaesthetists and other staff who would again pick up with the extra work.
Health New Zealand said a decision on the business case had yet to be made, due to a request for further information.
It said a final decision would be made in due course.
