Hospitals today are under relentless pressure to improve patient outcomes while protecting already thin operating margins. Yet one of the most common—and most preventable—sources of patient harm continues to fly under the radar: IV infiltration and extravasation injuries.
These events are not rare. They are not benign. And most importantly, they are not cheap.
What has been missing—until now—is a clear, data-backed way to quantify their true financial impact and the return on investment (ROI) of preventing severe IV injuries from extravasations and infiltrations.
It is alarming that IV therapy is the most frequently performed procedure in hospitals yet their failure rates can reach up to 50%, often leading to infiltration or extravasation injuries that develop quietly and progress rapidly, and become irreversible.
By the time these injuries are detected using traditional observation methods, the damage is often already severe. The consequences can include:
- Tissue necrosis
- Permanent scarring or staining
- Nerve damage
- Medication dosing errors
- In extreme cases, amputation
But the clinical consequences are only part of the story.
The financial consequences are far more expansive—and frequently invisible in standard hospital accounting.
The True Cost of “Unseen” Adverse Events
A comprehensive ROI model developed through collaboration between ivWatch and AON brings these hidden costs into focus. Leveraging one of the largest healthcare liability claims databases alongside real-world cost and operational data, the model quantifies the full downstream impact of severe IV injuries.
What it reveals is striking:
Severe IV injuries trigger a cascade of costs that extend well beyond initial treatment, including:
- Uncompensated remedial care (surgical interventions, ICU stays, extended length of stay)
- Professional liability exposure (claims, legal costs, settlements, insurance premiums)
- Operational disruption (readmissions, workflow inefficiencies, increased staff burden)
- Patient satisfaction penalties (impacting reimbursement and hospital ratings)
These are not marginal costs. They are systemic drains on hospital performance.
Early Detection Changes Everything
The same model demonstrates a clear and compelling solution: early detection through continuous IV monitoring.
Clinical evidence supports this shift. A large retrospective study published in the British Medical Journal found that continuous sensor-based monitoring reduced the severity of IV injuries by 93% compared to traditional observation methods.1
This is not incremental improvement—it is transformational.
By identifying complications before they escalate, hospitals can avoid the most severe and costly outcomes altogether.
Quantifying the ROI: Millions in Margin Impact
For hospital leaders, the question is no longer whether IV injuries are costly—it’s how much can be saved by preventing them.
The Aon-backed ROI model provides that answer:
- 150-bed pediatric hospitals:
Annual margin improvement of $8.9M to $13.4M - Non-pediatric hospitals:
Annual margin improvement of $5.1M to $7.9M
Even under conservative assumptions, the model shows a 7x to 14x return on investment.2
This is not a soft ROI driven by intangible benefits. It is a hard-dollar impact driven by avoided costs, reduced risk exposure, and improved operational efficiency.
Where the Value Comes From
The financial return is driven by multiple, compounding factors:
- Reduced Unreimbursed Care
Hospitals often absorb the cost of treating preventable complications. Preventing severe IV injuries alone can yield $1.6M to $5.6M in annual savings.
- Lower Legal and Insurance Costs
Fewer severe injuries mean fewer claims, lower settlements, and reduced insurance premiums—creating immediate and long-term financial relief.
- Improved Patient Satisfaction and Revenue
Patients without complications are twice as likely to give top satisfaction scores. Every 10% improvement in top ratings can translate into a 1.5% increase in revenue.
- Operational Efficiency Gains
Avoiding complications reduces length of stay, readmissions, and strain on clinical staff—freeing up capacity and improving throughput.
Why Traditional Monitoring Falls Short
Intermittent visual inspection is inherently reactive. It depends on symptoms that often appear only after significant damage has occurred.
Continuous surveillance, by contrast, is proactive.
ivWatch technology uses near-infrared light and predictive algorithms to continuously monitor IV sites, detecting subtle physiological changes long before they become visible. Clinicians are alerted in real time, enabling intervention at the earliest possible stage.
The result is a fundamental shift—from damage control to prevention.
A Strategic Imperative for Modern Healthcare
In today’s environment, every investment must be justified—not just clinically, but financially.
Continuous IV surveillance meets both criteria:
- It helps improve patient safety by dramatically reducing injury severity
- It protects hospital margins by eliminating avoidable costs
- It reduces risk exposure in an increasingly litigious healthcare landscape
- It enhances patient experience, directly impacting reimbursement
This is not a niche technology. It is a system-level solution to a system-level problem.
The Bottom Line
Hospitals can no longer afford to treat IV injuries as isolated clinical events. They are enterprise risks with measurable financial consequences.
The data is clear:
- IV injuries are common, underreported, and costly
- Early detection dramatically reduces severity
- The ROI of continuous monitoring is substantial, measurable, and immediate
The question is no longer whether hospitals should act—it’s how long they can afford to wait.
Explore the Full ROI Model
For a deeper look at the data and methodology behind these findings, including customizable assumptions for your facility, access the full Aon and ivWatch Value Estimation white paper here—or contact ivWatch to discuss a customized ROI analysis for your organization.
- BMJ Open. Continuous IV site monitoring in pediatric populations. 2023;13:e064372.
https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/4/e064372 - ivWatch Value Estimation. Financial benefits to hospitals of implementing a tool that detects IV infiltrations and extravasations. https://www.ivwatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/AON-ivWatch-Whitepaper.pdf