Critical Care Nurses' Practice of Oral Care for Critically Ill Patients with a Tracheostomy Tube

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Critical Care Nursing- faculty of nursing- Mansoura university- Egypt

2 Lecturer, Critical Care, and Emergency Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, Mansoura University

3 Professor of Critical Care and Emergency Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Mansoura University, Egypt.

Abstract

Background: Oral care is an essential intervention for patients with a tracheostomy tube. Critical care nurses (CCNs)
play a crucial role in providing proper oral care to maintain oral health and prevent infection, particularly ventilatorassociated
pneumonia. Aim: This study aimed to assess CCNs' practice of oral care for critically ill patients who have a
tracheostomy tube. Method: A descriptive observational research design was used to conduct this study with a
convenience sample of 60 CCNs working in three intensive care units affiliated with Mansoura Emergency Hospital in
Egypt. One tool was used to collect data for this study: critical care nurses' practice of oral care assessment tool.
Results: Most oral care interventions, such as gentle brushing the teeth and gum with chlorhexidine, suctioning
oropharyngeal secretions, washing the mouth with antiseptic oral rinses, and using oral swabs with 1.5 % hydrogen
peroxide in the event of infection, were not performed by all participant nurses. Conclusion and Recommendations:
Overall, CCNs demonstrated poor oral care practice. These findings may have a negative effect on patients' outcomes.
This emphasizes the importance of organizing oral care refresher training sessions regularly to improve nurses' practice.
More research is needed to investigate the effectiveness of oral care training programs on CCNs' practice and the clinical
outcomes of critically ill patients.
 

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