How often should patients get bed baths?

[Skippers1]

In my unit (trauma ICU) patients get bed baths twice a day - once by day shift and again by night shift. The nurses do this as an opportunity to check the patients for pressure sores and because they say it is comforting to the patient. I have no problem doing this assuming time permits, but wouldn't excessive bathing make patients prone to skin breakdown, dry out their skin, and reduce the skin's normal flora? I would always bath a patient if they are really dirty and when they are incontinent, but how often should they get a full bath? Can anyone help by recommending research articles on this topic? I want to use evidence-based practice to determine the correct thing to do.

[RN1982]

I like using the bath wipes and most of my co-workers do. Yea, there is a white residue, not a lot but it drys and it keeps the patient's skin moist. In my ICU, if the patient gets bath on days, they get bathed on days. When I work and I know that my patient was bathed during day shift, I wash them up with the bath wipes and change the pads and drawsheet beneath them. Everyone has their preference, there is no wrong way. I think using soap/water all the time is very drying to the skin and we don't have bath oil or lotion so I think the wipes are great most of the time. Of course, if there's a big mess to clean, soap and water is better.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

Our patients get baths on day shift. We use soap and water and washcloths.

[PICNICRN, BSN, RN]

Our pts get a bath every night shift- with the pink basin and washcloths. I just had a mother/infection control nurse insist on a new pink basin for EVERY bath because you "wash the butt and then rinse it out and wash the face the next day in the same basin".:uhoh21: Guess she never thought about the possibility that it could have been used for puking!

[yousoldtheworld]

At my LTC, the residents get two showers a week and a "bed bath" (usually done in the bathroom) each morning. Really it's supposed to be a full bath, but the staffing is so low right now that often all you have time to wash in the mornings are the face, back, stinky parts, and creases (basically, just a bit more than a partial).

When I worked at the hospital, the patients got a bed bath each morning and a partial each night, and showers upon request.

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

My pts ostomy burst the other day and the PCT grabbed the wash bowl and put it underneath the illeostomy. After we has cleaned him up with out the use of the wash bowl LOL, the offending wash bowl was placed in the garbage I was so afraid somebody would wash his face and body with it the next day. Yuck

[CathyLew]

does anyone use a C-tub anymore? I think it was called a century tub.... maybe that was just the one in our hospital, because it was a couple of centuries old! it had a mechanical lift and you dipped the patient into a swirling bath.

The thing was scary to me... I can't see how it would ever get really clean. the staff was responsible for cleaning it in between patients...and you know how many short cuts are taken with short staffing.

And some paitients used it as a whirlpool for wound debridement.

to me it was like a public hot-tub.... you take your chances at what is brewing in there!

[fuzzywuzzy, CNA]

Where I work we use bag baths on the long-term residents. Rehab patients use a basin.

I think the bag baths kind of suck. It's nice not to have to rinse, but they don't seem to get rid of the pee smell on incontinent residents. And they're pretty drying to the skin.

First shift uses them to give everyone a full bath. On second we're supposed to use them to wash the face, hands, butt, back, armpits, and skin folds, and put lotion on the back and legs, but a lot of people are so dry that I do the face/hands/butt only, and then put lotion all over. I check all the folds for redness and only clean them if they have powder in them or if the person sweats.

[Babs0512]

Patients need to be bathed, as often as they need to be bathed. If they are incontinent, and the bed is soaked, you'll need to bath them to get the urine off of their skin. Same for feces, or those who sweat profusely. Use good skin care, lotion and/or powder, moisture barrier where it applies. Don't forget to chart areas of breakdown.

Blessings

[nrsang97, BSN, RN]

One day I use soap and water and the next day I just use the comfort wipes (bag bath). Soap and water every day is too drying.