Abstract:
BACKGROUND: Oral hygiene care is one of the measures of preventing ventilator-associated
pneumonia (VAP) which is the second morbidity cause among nosocomial infections. The best
practice of oral hygiene for intubated patients can play a role in reducing mortality and morbidity
associated to VAP. Therefore, Intensive Care Units (ICUs) need competent and skilled nurses
with knowledge about oral hygiene care to maintain oral hygiene of the intubated patients and
maintain the normal flora of their oral cavity
METHODOLOGY: The current study uses a descriptive non-experimental cross-sectional
study design and quantitative study approach with convenient sampling method. It involved 89
nurses who worked in ICUs of four referral and teaching hospitals in Rwanda at the time of the
study. The target population was 114 ICU registered nurses and sample size was calculated
based on Yamane‘s formula sample size calculation.
Data was collected using an existing validated questionnaire for assessing knowledge and an
existing validated checklist developed to observe nurses practice during oral care. Data was
analyzed using SPSS. Both descriptive and inferential data analysis was done. Chi-Square test
was used to identify if there is any statistical association between variables. A P-value less than
0.05 were considered statistically significant.
RESULTS: All targeted 89 ICUs nurses as our sample size completed the questionnaires making
a 100% response rate. More than a half had advanced diploma in general nursing 54(60.70%)
and 48(53.9%) had a good knowledge while 64(71.9%) nurses had average practice and 25
(28.08%) had poor practice of oral hygiene care for intubated patients. There was significant
association between experience and knowledge, for example experience was significantly
associated with the knowledge regarding the signs of poor oral hygiene with P value of 0.03.
CONCLUSION: Results of this study revealed that almost the half of participants do not have
adequate knowledge and skills to perform oral care for intubated patients. This highlights the
needs to improve knowledge and skills of ICUs nurses of oral hygiene care in order to improve
quality care of oral care for intubated patients.
Keywords: oral care, intubated patients, nurses working in ICU, ICU nurses, knowledge Practice
