Selective use of pressure-redistributing support surfaces is considered an essential component of a pressure injury prevention bundle. Critically ill children who are too big for an isolette but too little for a bed are usually placed in critical care cribs that have unique features such as moveable side rails and a built-in scale for weighing the patient, but they do not have a mattress designed to redistribute pressure. The primary aim of this quality improvement project was to evaluate a pressure redistribution mattress designed for use in critical care cribs.
We retrospectively reviewed 22 charts of critically ill pediatric patients who participated in a product trial completed over a 12-week period in a stand-alone children's hospital in the Western United States. We reviewed demographic data, skin assessments, Braden Q Scale score, and support surface use. Our review revealed no pressure injury occurrences over the 12-week data collection period.
Findings from this quality improvement project suggest that the pressure-redistributing mattress, when used as part of an intervention bundle, prevents pressure injuries in critically ill pediatric patients.
Charleen Deo Singh, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, CWOCN, Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, UC Davis, Sacramento, California; San Jose State University Wound Ostomy Program, San Jose, California; and Cottage Hospital, Santa Barbara, California.
Noordeen Shoqirat, PhD, RN, Mutah University, Karak, Jordan.
Correspondence: Charleen Deo Singh, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, CWOCN, Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, UC Davis, 2570 48th St, Sacramento, CA 95817 (cdsingh@ucdavis.edu).
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
