Evaluation of the effectiveness of a pressure injury prevention care bundle in an intensive care unit

This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of a pressure injury prevention care bundle in an intensive care unit. The study was designed as a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest study without a control group and was conducted between 01.10.2023 and 31.03.2024 in the Anesthesiology and Reanimation Intensive Care Unit of Bolu İzzet Baysal State Hospital. The study sample consisted of 28 nurses working in the intensive care unit and 108 hospitalized patients. The effect of the training provided to intensive care unit nurses on their compliance with the care bundle and on pressure injury (PI) incidence was evaluated. Data were collected using the "Nurses' Identification Characteristics Form", "Patients' Identification Characteristics Form", "Nurses' Pressure Injury Knowledge Level Determination Questionnaire", "Pressure Injury Prevention Care Bundle Control Form", and the "Nurses' Opinion Form on Pressure Injury Prevention Care Bundle". In the evaluation of the data, descriptive statistics (number, percentage, mean ± standard deviation, and median [minimum-maximum]) were used. Comparisons between periods and PI rates were analyzed using the chi-square test, and p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. When nurses' compliance with the care bundle was examined, the mean care bundle compliance rate was 93.48 ± 10.26 in the October-December period and 95.33 ± 14.15 in the January-March period. Before the implementation of the study, the PI rate was 9.15 in the April-June 2023 period; however, this rate decreased to 2.72 in the January-March 2024 period, and the decrease in PI rate was statistically significant. As a result, it was determined that the training provided to nurses and the implementation of the evidence-based pressure injury prevention care bundle increased compliance with preventive interventions and reduced pressure injury rates. It is recommended that care provided for the prevention of pressure injuries in intensive care units should be planned under the guidance of a pressure injury prevention care bundle.