Missed Oral Care in Nursing: A Study
Author Information
Author(s): Chiara Gallione, Erika Bassi, Ines Basso, Chiara Airoldi, Michela Barisone, Antonella Molon, Gerardo Di Nardo, Cristina Torgano, Alberto Dal Molin, Richard Gray
Primary Institution: Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale
Hypothesis
What is the extent of missed oral care in nursing?
Conclusion
The study confirms that oral care is frequently missed in acute care settings, highlighting the need for improved policies and practices.
Supporting Evidence
- Oral care was reported as missed by nearly one-third of participating nurses.
- The most significant reasons for missed care included inadequate staffing and high patient turnover.
- Missed oral care can lead to increased risk of hospital-acquired infections.
- Only 25% of units had specific oral care policies in place.
- Most nurses reported being satisfied with their roles despite the missed care.
- High workloads and insufficient resources were common barriers to providing oral care.
- Missed nursing care is a global issue affecting patient safety.
- Improving oral care practices requires systemic changes in healthcare settings.
Takeaway
Nurses often forget to help patients with their mouth care, which is really important for their health. This study shows that many nurses are too busy or don't have enough help to do this job.
Methodology
A cross-sectional study using the MISSCARE survey was conducted among 437 nurses in a Northern Italian university hospital.
Potential Biases
Self-reported surveys may introduce bias in measuring missed nursing care.
Limitations
The response rate was lower than expected, which may limit the generalizability of the findings.
Participant Demographics
The majority of participants were female nurses with an average age of 39.31 years.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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