Bed-Bath: The Care-Omitting Behavior of the Nursing Team

Objective: The study’s goal has been to assess the completion of the bed-bath procedure and the main care provided by the nursing team before, during and after it. Methods: It is a cross-sectional and observational study that was carried out in the Intensive Critical Unit of a teaching hospital with the participation of eight nurse technicians. Data collection was performed through an instrument structured type checklists over 30 times of observation from 1,080 actions. Results: There were observed 10 care before and 28 during and after bed-bath procedures. The bath was carried out technically without prior notice, without considering the individuality and privacy of patients, especially those undergoing mechanical ventilation. There was no participation of nurses and most of the actions taken by the nursing staff did not meet the literature recommendations. Conclusions: There is need to improving the quality of bed-bath procesdures performed by the nursing team and adoption of evidence-based practices in the care process.