Redesigning nighttime care for personal care residents

This study investigated the effects of non-disruptive nighttime care for residents in a personal care setting. The sample consisted of 18 personal care home residents in an urban, 388-bed, long-term care facility located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The study used a quasi-experimental, single-arm design, exposing all residents to both intervention and control conditions. Independent variables were the current nighttime routine of regular rounds to turn and change residents, and a non-disruptive plan of care in which residents were checked hourly by staff and necessary care was provided when they were awake. Outcome variables included total sleep from evening bedtime to morning awakening, longest period of uninterrupted sleep at night, amount of time spent sleeping during the day, self-reported restfulness of cognitively intact residents, and skin condition. Findings suggested that the non-disruptive nighttime care routine increased total sleep by an average of 30 minutes a night for each resident. The amount of uninterrupted sleep increased by approximately 45 minutes with the new routine. No significant differences were noted in the amount of time spent sleeping during the day. There was no evidence of skin breakdown during any phase of the study. Clinical implications of this study demonstrate a need for gerontological nurses to re-evaluate nighttime care routines in personal care settings.