Wang, Isabel, Walker, Rachel, and Gillespie, Brigid M. (2019) Pressure injury prevention for surgery: Results from a prospective, observational study in a tertiary hospital. Journal of Perioperative Nursing, 31 (3). 4.

Preview

PDF (Published Version) - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (181kB) | Preview

Abstract

Background: Hospital acquired pressure injury (HAPI) refers to the development of pressure injury (PI) during hospitalisation. Prevalence rates of HAPI among all PI cases in acute health settings vary widely in different regions and countries, ranging from three to 18 per cent1–12. While patients with limited mobility are at greater risk of developing a PI, anaesthetised patients are particularly vulnerable due to limited mobility. Perioperative HAPI remains problematic, with current prevalence rates varying from 5.1 to 64.1 per cent13. Through the literature review component of this study, we identified five categories of pressure injury prevention (PIP) strategies that comply with current clinical practice guidelines14. There has been considerable research undertaken on PIP in medical–surgical wards but research undertaken in the perioperative environment is scarce15.

Study aim: The aim of this study was to report on the PIP strategies used by perioperative health professionals at a large tertiary hospital in southeast Queensland.

Method: This is an observational study of the use of PIP strategies by health care professionals across a selected range of surgical procedures in a tertiary hospital. A structured data collection tool was developed, tested and used to collect patients’ demographic and clinical data, and health care professionals’ implementation of PIP strategies, as well as data from skin inspection on day two after surgery. Observations occurred during the preoperative, intra-operative and post-operative periods, i.e. in the induction room, in the operating room and during the first half hour after the patient was admitted to the Post Anaesthesia Care Unit (PACU) respectively. The study was conducted in 2016.

Setting and sample: The study setting was a 750-bed tertiary hospital in Queensland. Surgical procedures were purposively selected across seven specialties. Adult patients whose length of surgery exceeded 60 minutes and who were anticipated to be an inpatient for a minimum of 48 hours after surgery were included in the study. All perioperative practitioners working in the operating room department were invited to participate. Patients who were unable to provide informed consent and who could not speak, read or understand English in the absence of an interpreter were excluded from the study.

Results: In total, this study recruited and observed 278 staff during surgical procedures of 73 recruited patients. Table 1 presents patients’ characteristics by surgical specialty. Each specialty group had at least ten

Item ID:	84233
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	2209-1092
Copyright Information:	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Date Deposited:	20 Feb 2025 02:44
FoR Codes:	42 HEALTH SCIENCES > 4205 Nursing > 420501 Acute care @ 100%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2001 Clinical health > 200104 Prevention of human diseases and conditions @ 100%
Downloads:	Total: 5 Last 12 Months: 4
	More Statistics