Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurses Research Articles

A Study to Assess the Effectiveness of Informative Booklet Regarding Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Among Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Staff Nurses Regarding Prevention of Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infection (CLABSI)

Background: Nurses in Intensive Care Units (ICU) have a vital role in reducing Central line associated blood stream infections (CLABSI) if they are well educated to use strategies to decrease Central line associated blood stream infections (CLABSI) rate which are based on the center for disease control and prevention guidelines (CDC) to improve patient’s outcomes. Health-care-associated infections are a huge concern in the intensive care units (ICUs) across the globe. Nearly 90% of catheter-related bloodstream infections are caused by central venous catheters (CVCs). Central venous catheters (CVC) are commonly inserted in critically ill patients and play an important role for hemodynamic monitoring and delivery of crucial treatments. Central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) is a laboratory confirmed bloodstream infection occurring in a patient with a CVC in place for >48 hours that is not related to an infection at any other site. Preventing nosocomial infections pose a great challenge in ICU, because of the multi-drug resistant organisms treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics. Clinical practice guidelines from various organizations are available for prevention of vascular catheter related infections. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement has introduced a “central line bundle” that includes the five best evidence-based practices to prevent CLABSI. This bundle includes hand hygiene, maximal barrier precautions during catheter insertion, skin antisepsis with chlorhexidine, optimal selection of the catheter site, with avoidance of the femoral vein and a daily assessment of line necessity, including the removal of an unnecessary line. Of these components, “hand hygiene” (HH) is the most convenient and cost effective to follow. “Hand Hygiene” HH prevents the transmission of pathogens and is a universal strategy to prevent all nosocomial infections. The World Health Organization has proposed a multimodal strategy; which includes five elements called the “Five Moments for Hand Hygiene”, as an evidence-based approach to prevent hospital-acquired infections. The five moments include, before touching the patient, before performing any a clean/aseptic procedure, after exposure/risk of body fluid, after touching the patient and after touching the patient surroundings. Therefore, the researcher was curious to know the effectiveness of informative booklet regarding knowledge, attitude and practice of intensive care unit staff nurses regarding prevention of central line associated blood stream infection (CLABSI).

Recognizing and Reducing Delirium in the Intensive Care Unit.

This article discusses a quality improvement study conducted on intensive care unit (ICU) staff nurses that assessed their ability to utilize the CAM-ICU tool for delirium detection properly. Staff members' expertise in identifying and managing delirious patients directly correlates with reducing the long-term sequelae associated with ICU delirium. The cohort of ICU nurses participating in this research study took a questionnaire on 4 separate occasions. The survey ascertained quantitative and qualitative data, reflecting personal knowledge about the CAM-ICU tool and delirium. After each round of assessment, group and one-on-one educational sessions were provided by the researchers. The study culminated with providing each staff member a delirium reference card (badge buddy) containing relevant and easily accessible clinical information that supported the ICU staff nurses in correctly implementing the CAM-ICU tool.

Effect of Management Intervention Program on Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurses’ Shift Change Process at El Menshawy Hospital

Effect of Management Intervention Program on Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurses’ Shift Change Process at El Menshawy Hospital

A study to assess the knowledge of Nabh accreditation standards and quality improvement among intensive care unit staff nurses

A study to assess the knowledge of Nabh accreditation standards and quality improvement among intensive care unit staff nurses

Implementation of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia Prevention Bundle among ICU Nurses in Salmaniya Medical Complex, Bahrain: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention to improve the knowledge regarding ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and practices of VAP prevention bundle among the intensive care unit (ICU) nurses in Salmaniya Medical Complex in Bahrain. Methods: A quasi- experimental study was conducted in the main ICU of Salmaniya Medical Complex in Bahrain from October 2021 to January 2022. A convenience sampling technique was used, and 58 ICU staff nurses were enrolled in the study. Tools used for data collection were a self-administered questionnaire to assess ICU nurses knowledge and an observational checklist to assess the adherence of ICU nurses to the VAP prevention bundle. Results: Of 58 total study subjects, almost three-quarters of the ICU nurses 42 (72%) had poor knowledge of VAP prior to the educational intervention. However, after the implementation, the proportion increased with 46 (79%) of the nurses acquiring good knowledge about the VAP and 56 (97%) of the ICU nurses acquiring good knowledge of the VAP prevention bundle. Overall, there was a significant improvement in the median score of adherences to the VAP prevention bundle elements before and after the intervention (p-value ≤ 0.05). Conclusion: This study concluded that the levels of knowledge about VAP and practices of the VAP prevention bundle can be improved by implementing a relevant educational program for ICU nurses. The findings of this study also provide evidence of the importance of a continuous training program for ICU nurses to ensure quality patient care in the critical care units.

Knowledge Regarding Risk Factors and Preventive Measures of Varicose Vein among Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurses

Background: Varicose vein has disturbed humans since ancient days as a chronic disorder. According to the current statistics given by the Express health care, approximately 2.7 million people worldwide suffer with varicose veins. If left untreated and undiagnosed, varicose veins can end up with pooling of blood in the venous system and further complications.
 Aim and Objectives: Aim of the study was to assess the knowledge of staff nurses regarding risk factors and preventive measures of varicose vein. The study objectives were to assess the knowledge of staff nurses working in intensive care units regarding risk factors and preventive measures of varicose vein, to develop an evidence-based information booklet for staff nurses regarding prevention of varicose veins and to find out the association between the knowledge scores of staff nurses regarding risk factors and preventive measures of varicose vein with selected demographic variables.
 Materials and methods: A quantitative research approach with a non-experimental descriptive survey research design was used to select 60 staff nurses working in the ICUs using convenience sampling method. The data was collected using a structured knowledge questionnaire developed by the researchers. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS.
 Results: The study results showed that 53% of the staff nurses had adequate knowledge scores regarding the risk factors and preventive measures of varicose veins whereas 30% had moderate knowledge, and 17 % had inadequate knowledge scores. Significant association was found between demographic variables such as age, experience and education of staff nurses with their knowledge scores.
 Conclusion: Approximately only half of the study participants had adequate knowledge regarding risk factors and preventive measures of varicose vein. Hence it is recommended that extensive educational sessions to be conducted for further enhancement of awareness of staff nurses related to prevention and management of varicose veins.

EFFECTIVENESS OF A PLANNED TEACHING PROGRAMME ON KNOWLEDGE REGARDING VENTILATOR ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA AMONG STAFF NURSES WORKING IN A TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL IN SRINAGAR

Background: When it comes to hospital-acquired illnesses, the most prevalent one to face is ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). 27 percent of all critically sick patients are infected with pneumonia, making it the second most frequent nosocomial infection. Onegroup pre-test and post-test study design was employed in the quantitative research technique. It was done in Krishna hospital in karad. Simple random sampling was used to choose 60 Intensive care unit staff nurses. Structured questionnaires were used to gather the data. An in-depth statistical analysis was performed on the collected data. Staff nurses' pre-test and post-test knowledge scores were 10.516 and 16.633, respectively, and the mean difference was 6.117, with a computed t value of 17.712 that is statistically significant at a level of 0.001 (p 0.001), indicating a statistically significant difference. It has been shown that the proposed educational programme is successful in improving the understanding of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

Knowledge and Practices of Intensive Care Unit Nurses Related to Prevention of Ventilator Associated Pneumonia in Selected Intensive Care Units of a Tertiary Care Centre, India.

Background:Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) is a recognized nosocomial infection and a leading cause of high morbidity and mortality. Intensive Care Unit (ICU) nurses are in the best position to put the known evidence-based strategies into practice to prevent VAP. The aim of the present study is to assess the knowledge and practices of ICU nurses related to prevention of VAP in selected ICUs of a tertiary care centre in India (2013–2014) and to find out the association between knowledge and practices.Materials and Methods:A descriptive survey was conducted in the different ICUs of a tertiary care hospital in India. Purposive sampling technique was used and 108 ICU staff nurses were enrolled during the period of data collection. The tool used for data collection was a self-developed valid and reliable knowledge-based questionnaire and an observational checklist. The descriptive (frequency and percentages) and inferential (Chi-square test) statistics was used.ResultsOut of the 108 nurses enrolled in the study, 82 (75.93%) had average, 24 (22.22%) had good and only 2 (1.85%) of the ICU nurses had poor knowledge. Assessment of the practices revealed that 68 (94.44%) nurses had average and only 4 (5.55%) nurses had good practice. There was no association between the knowledge and practices of ICU nurses related to prevention of VAP. (χ2 = 0.14, p = 0.710).Conclusions:Although the nurses were having good to average knowledge scores, their practices were not associated with knowledge scores. There is a need to find out the ways that would help the nurses to adhere to good practices.

Evidence based guidelines for prevention of Ventilator-associated Pneumonia among Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurses

Ventilator associated pneumonia is a common hospital acquired pneumonia in ventilated patients. VAP occurs in 28% of patients who receive mechanical ventilation, where its rate of occurrence varies with the duration of mechanical ventilation. The aim of the study was to assess impact of educational intervention on knowledge and practice of intensive care staff nurses regarding evidence based guidelines for prevention of ventilatorassociated pneumonia (VAP) among patients admitted in intensive care units of New Civil Hospital, Surat. Evaluative (quantitative) research approach and pre experimental with one group pretest post test research design was adopted for this study. A sample of 30 staff nurses working in intensive care unit of New Civil Hospital, Surat were selected by non-probability purposive sampling technique. Knowledge level was assessed by selfstructured knowledge questionnaire and practice level by observational checklist. The data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results revealed that maximum subjects 46.66% were between age group 20–30 years, majority 90% were female, about 80% had done GNM, 53% were having between 5–10 years of working experience. The mean posttest knowledge score was 20.67 higher than the mean pretest knowledge score 15 and mean posttest practice score was 11.8 higher than the mean pretest practice score 6.4. The karl pearson's correlation value computed between knowledge and practice scores of staff nurses r was 0.9, this indicates the existence of moderately positive correlation between knowledge and practice score. The calculated chi-square value for knowledge and practice scores with selected socio demographic variables revealed that there was no statistical association. Furthermore the study revealed that educational intervention program on evidence based guidelines for prevention of ventilator associated pneumonia was effective in improving knowledge and positive practice regarding VAP.

The relationship between professional communication competences and nursing performance of critical care nurses in South Korea.

Ineffective communication of critical care nurses can lead to higher levels of burnout and negatively affect quality of patient care and patient outcomes such as higher mortality. The purpose of this study is to describe the relationship between professional communication competences and nursing performance of critical care nurses in South Korea. This cross-sectional study collected data on 197 intensive care unit staff nurses in 3 tertiary academic medical centres in South Korea from July to November 2014. In the hierarchical regression analysis, the professional communication competences were the only significant predictors of nursing performance after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. In addition, the greater professional communication competences of nurses were associated with being older and having a higher education level, more years of overall clinical and intensive care unit experience, and a higher monthly salary. Our findings indicate that communication skills-related training should be included in the practical education to improve nursing performance for the quality of intensive care. Further research is needed to identify the comprehensive factors on professional communication competences of nurses in intensive care units.

Ventilator-associated complications: A study to evaluate the effectiveness of a planned teaching program for intensive care unit staff nurses—an Indian experience

The role of nursing staff is important for both prevention and early diagnosis of complications associated with mechanical ventilation. The objective of our study was to assess the knowledge of nurses working in an intensive care unit for at least 6 months regarding ventilator-associated complications and its prevention. A quasiexperimental study was conducted using a questionnaire with 50 questions formulated by the panel of experts. A planned teaching program was developed based on related literature regarding ventilator-associated complications and its prevention and was presented to the staff nurses. The level of knowledge of the nursing staff was assessed before and after the workshop. Fifty nurses were included in the study. Among the staff nurses, 53.40% had average knowledge regarding ventilator-associated complications. Posttest, 77.20% of the total score was obtained for ventilator-associated complications. Regular training programs can be effective in improving the knowledge of nursing staff.

Level of stress and its determinants among Intensive Care Unit staff

Context:Stress is a usual and normal part of our daily lives. It is a normal physical reaction to an internal or external pressure that is placed on a person's system. Extended periods of stress can cause destructive changes in the body.Objectives:(1) To assess the prevalence of stress and its level among intensive care unit (ICU) staff (doctors and nurses) of various hospitals and (2) to correlate the level of stress with certain variables.Settings and Design:A cross-sectional study was conducted in the ICU of various hospital of Pune for a period of 1 month.Materials and Methods:Eighty-two ICU staff (doctors and nurses) were contacted and interviewed using pretested proforma containing DASS stress rating scale (for stress only).Statistical Analysis Used:Data analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Sciences (SPSS) version 19.0 software. To compare the level of stress with various parameters, we used Chi-square test. P value <0.05 was considered to be significant.Results:The overall prevalence of stress among ICU staff (doctors and nurses) was 52.43%. Prevalence of stress among ICU doctors was 36.58% and nurses was 68.29%. According to the DASS (for stress only), 19.51% doctors were mildly stressed, 14.63% were moderately stressed, and 2.44% were severely stressed. Among nurses, 48.78% were mildly stressed and 19.51% were moderately stressed.Conclusions:The result indicated that prevalence of stress among ICU staff (doctors and nurses) is high.

EFFECTIVENESS OF STRUCTURED TEACHING PROGRAMME ON PREVENTION OF ICU DELIRIUM AMONG NURSES

AbstractDelirium is extremely common in intensive care unit (ICU) patient due to comorbidity, critical illness and iatroogenesis. This complication of hospital stay is extremely hazardous in older persons and is associated with prolonged hospital stays. yet ICU nurses and physicians are usually unaware of the presence of hypoactive delirium and only recognize this disturbance in agitated patients (hyperactive delirium).The aim of the study was to assess the existing knowledge of ICU staff nurses regarding ICU delirium and to assess the effectiveness of structured teaching programme on the knowledge of ICU staff nurses regarding ICU delirium. An evaluative approach with one group Pretest Posttest design was used for the study. Fourty samples were selected by using non-probability purposive sampling method, in selected hospitals of Udupi District. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. A significant difference between Pretest and Posttest knowledge was found (t=23.95, p=&lt;0.0001). The study findings showed that there significant increase in posttest knowledge of ICU staff nurses regarding ICU delirium. The nurse can identify the delirium early and prevent the complication by treating well in advance.

Intensive care unit staff nurses: predicting factors for career decisions

The aim of this study was to understand the factors related to intention to leave their job among intensive care unit (ICU) nurses in eastern Taiwan and to make between-group comparisons between an intention to leave and an intention to stay as well as to predict the influencing factors that affect ICU staff nurses' intention to leave. Nurses' intention to leave their job may have an important impact on the actual turnover of nurses. The issue has always been of concern to nursing executives. Only limited empirical studies in the area have been investigated in an Asian culture context and particularly the eastern Taiwan region. A cross-sectional predictive study was performed during 2005 with 130 nurses recruited from two ICUs at a medical centre. A researcher-designed questionnaire based on the Cooper's model with structured interviews was used to determine each nurse's characteristics and their intention to leave their job. Multiple logistic regression analysis was employed to investigate the various factors associated with this. The overall response rate was 100%; 63 (48.9%) revealed that they intended to leave their jobs. The findings were that their self-rated health status, the number of diseases, the level of happiness, the presence of depression, job satisfaction, sleep quality, type of license and their unit were significantly associated with an intention to leave (p = 0.05-0.001). Depression and sleep quality proved to be the most significant predictors of ICU staff nurses' intention to leave their job. The findings suggest that there is a need to take steps to improve nurses' health-related quality of life and to develop effective strategies to improve nurse retention. A succinct validated instrument would help identify the important factors that predict ICU nurses' intention to leave their job, which may result in job disengagement. Predictors found in this study may be used as outcome variables for developing such an effective method of improving nurse retention in ICUs.

Confirming the reliability of the sedation-agitation scale administered by ICU nurses without experience in its use.

To determine the validity and reliability of the Sedation-Agitation scale (SAS) when administered by intensive care unit (ICU) nurses with no experience in its use. Prospective, psychometric evaluation. Adult medical-cardiac ICU. Sixty patients. Sedation and agitation were observed simultaneously but independently by nurses and two investigators, and patients were rated with the SAS. The assessment of an experienced clinical nurse specialist was recorded on visual analog scales (VAS) for sedation (VAS-S) and agitation (VAS-A). The SAS scores of ICU staff nurses were compared with VAS scored by the clinical nurse specialist using Pearson correlation coefficient. The SAS correlated well with VAS-S (Spearman's p = -0.77, p<0.001). Neither SAS nor VAS-A was correlated (Spearman's p = 0.05, p>0.5), but there were few observations of agitated patients. The SAS interrater agreement was excellent between the two trained investigators (weighted K = 0.93, p<0.001) and between investigators and staff nurses (weighted K = 0.85 and 0.87, p<0.001 for both). The SAS is reliable when administered by staff nurses with no experience with it. Due to the paucity of observations of agitated patients, we were unable to determine its validity for assessing agitation.