Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study
Abstract Background Although oral hygiene is closely related to various diseases, it is sub-optimal in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Oral care in the ICU is challenged by nursing workloads, low staffing, and higher acuity patients, there are few policies and written guidelines for oral care. Nurses...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2024-02-01
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| Series: | BMC Oral Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-024-03979-3 |
| _version_ | 1797272946633342976 |
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| author | Xingru Li Lin Yao Xinchen Yang Meixia Huang Bo Zhang Tao Yu Yun Tang |
| author_facet | Xingru Li Lin Yao Xinchen Yang Meixia Huang Bo Zhang Tao Yu Yun Tang |
| author_sort | Xingru Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Although oral hygiene is closely related to various diseases, it is sub-optimal in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Oral care in the ICU is challenged by nursing workloads, low staffing, and higher acuity patients, there are few policies and written guidelines for oral care. Nurses often delegate oral care to nursing assistants (NAs) whose role is overlooked. This study is to explore the perspectives, obstacles, and challenges of NAs in the oral care of the ICU. Methods A qualitative study and semi-structured interviews were conducted with NAs in three ICU units, and Colaizzi’s phenomenological method was used to analyze the records. Results Initially, 13 NAs met the inclusion criteria, and two did not participate in this study as they refused to be recorded. Finally, 11 ICU NAs were interviewed, with three receiving face-to-face interviews and eight receiving telephone interviews. Using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method, two themes and eight subthemes emerged from the data, we examined the self-perception, barriers and challenges of NAs regarding oral care and identified the subthemes: (1) The target audience, frequency, and importance; (2) Role; (3) Evaluation; (4) Patient-related factors; (5) Oral care tools; (6) Psychology of NAs; (7) Lack of education and training; (8) Lack of team support. Conclusion Nursing assistants whose roles are overlooked by the nursing team are important members of the ICU team. Though oral care is closely related to disease prevention, it is rarely considered an essential task. Major barriers to implementing oral care in the ICU environment and patients include the psychological quality of participants, non-standard education and training, and inadequate team support. The expectation is that medical personnel will prioritize oral hygiene and recognize the significance of NAs in nursing work. Furthermore, future ICU oral care should investigate suitable tools and mouthwashes, simplified and standardized processes, standardized training, and multidisciplinary team collaboration. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T14:37:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-215980b3f682433f84ae2cecc35c2721 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-6831 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T14:37:34Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Oral Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-215980b3f682433f84ae2cecc35c27212024-03-05T20:34:16ZengBMCBMC Oral Health1472-68312024-02-012411910.1186/s12903-024-03979-3Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative studyXingru Li0Lin Yao1Xinchen Yang2Meixia Huang3Bo Zhang4Tao Yu5Yun Tang6Department of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical CollegeSchool of Clinical Medicine, Soochow UniversityDepartment of Nursing, Nanchang UniversityDepartment of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical CollegeDepartment of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical CollegeDepartment of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical CollegeDepartment of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical CollegeAbstract Background Although oral hygiene is closely related to various diseases, it is sub-optimal in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Oral care in the ICU is challenged by nursing workloads, low staffing, and higher acuity patients, there are few policies and written guidelines for oral care. Nurses often delegate oral care to nursing assistants (NAs) whose role is overlooked. This study is to explore the perspectives, obstacles, and challenges of NAs in the oral care of the ICU. Methods A qualitative study and semi-structured interviews were conducted with NAs in three ICU units, and Colaizzi’s phenomenological method was used to analyze the records. Results Initially, 13 NAs met the inclusion criteria, and two did not participate in this study as they refused to be recorded. Finally, 11 ICU NAs were interviewed, with three receiving face-to-face interviews and eight receiving telephone interviews. Using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method, two themes and eight subthemes emerged from the data, we examined the self-perception, barriers and challenges of NAs regarding oral care and identified the subthemes: (1) The target audience, frequency, and importance; (2) Role; (3) Evaluation; (4) Patient-related factors; (5) Oral care tools; (6) Psychology of NAs; (7) Lack of education and training; (8) Lack of team support. Conclusion Nursing assistants whose roles are overlooked by the nursing team are important members of the ICU team. Though oral care is closely related to disease prevention, it is rarely considered an essential task. Major barriers to implementing oral care in the ICU environment and patients include the psychological quality of participants, non-standard education and training, and inadequate team support. The expectation is that medical personnel will prioritize oral hygiene and recognize the significance of NAs in nursing work. Furthermore, future ICU oral care should investigate suitable tools and mouthwashes, simplified and standardized processes, standardized training, and multidisciplinary team collaboration.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-024-03979-3Intensive care unitNursing assistantOral careQualitative researchRehabilitation |
| spellingShingle | Xingru Li Lin Yao Xinchen Yang Meixia Huang Bo Zhang Tao Yu Yun Tang Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study BMC Oral Health Intensive care unit Nursing assistant Oral care Qualitative research Rehabilitation |
| title | Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study |
| title_full | Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study |
| title_fullStr | Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study |
| title_short | Perceptions, barriers, and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit: a qualitative study |
| title_sort | perceptions barriers and challenges of oral care among nursing assistants in the intensive care unit a qualitative study |
| topic | Intensive care unit Nursing assistant Oral care Qualitative research Rehabilitation |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-024-03979-3 |
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