Avaliação da eficácia do lembrete de algaliação, na redução de dias de algaliação e da taxa de infecção urinária associada a algaliação

Abstract

Urinary infections are some of the most common nosocomial infections and they must, therefore, be a cause for concern in our hospitals. In this sense, it is necessary to develop measures to help to reduce the number of cases. It has been proven that most of these urinary infections are linked to the fitting of urinary catheters and, especially, to patients having these catheters for excessive periods of time. This is the reason why one of the measures that has been introduced and is now being developed, although in a discrete manner at some hospitals, is the use of reminders. Their aim is to remind doctors and nurses that the patient still has a catheter fitted and they can then assess the need for it on a daily basis. These reminders are already being used in some hospitals across the world and most studies carried out show that they are an effective measure in the reduction of days of catheter use and the reduction in the number of urinary infections linked to catheters. This measure has therefore already been included in the main guidelines to prevent infections. As far as Portugal is concerned, we have not found any cases where this type of reminder had been used. This is the reason this study has been carried out: to try to analyse the efficiency of the “urinary catheter reminder” in the context of a Portuguese hospital. This study included 343 patients who had a urinary catheter temporarily during their hospital stay and it compares two six month periods in two consecutive years at the Internal Medicine Department of the Caldas da Rainha Hospital. In the first period the urinary catheter reminder was not used and, in the second period, it was. This reminder was intended to remind the doctor in charge, on a daily basis, of the presence of the urinary catheter and this way make him/her reconsider the need to continue using it with each patient. The analysis of the results obtained by applying this measure shows a clear reduction in the number of days of catheter use, as well as in the urinary infections linked to the use of catheters. We can therefore conclude that the urinary catheter reminder is a measure which is simple, economic and easy to apply and which is also, mainly, an effective way to reduce the number of days of catheter use and the number of urinary infections linked to catheter use, specifically in the context of a Portuguese hospital.

Date of Award	6 Feb 2014
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Fernando Mena Martins (Supervisor) & Maria Filomena Coelho (Co-Supervisor)