Determination of neonatal unit nurses' practices for newborn skin care: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundThis study was conducted to determine the practices of neonatal nurses for newborn skin care. MethodsThis cross-sectional study was carried out with Neonatal Unit nurses between June 2016 and August 2018. A total of 124 nurses constituted the sample of the study. Necessary permissions were obtained from the institutions and Ethics Committee. An introductory characteristic form and a questionnaire to determine the practices of neonatal nurses regarding skincare were used to collect data. The data were evaluated with descriptive statistics. ResultsIn this study, 79.8% of the nurses were bachelor degree, employment length in the neonatal unit was found 0–5 years in 68.5%. Alcohol was the most (83.9%) preferred skin antiseptic, and %8.9 of nurses used povidone-iodine. The first bath of the newborn was often (41.9%) delayed until the umbilical cord falls off. The natural drying method was found to be the most (81.5%) preferred umbilical care method. Only one-third of the nurses made a daily assessment of newborn skin and almost none used an assessment scale. ConclusionThis study drew attention to the correct and also incorrect practices of nurses in newborn skin care. Nurses should update their newborn skin care practices in line with evidence-based practices. Our study findings are important in terms of revealing the need that nurses should be equipped with knowledge about current evidence-based practices and the need for establishing guidelines and care protocols on the subject.