Oral health care provided by nurses for hospitalized patients in Korea

To investigate registered nurses' awareness and implementation of oral health care in patients who are hospitalized in general wards or intensive care units (ICUs) in South Korea.

This research was performed as a descriptive survey of 149 nurses working in nine general hospitals with at least 100 beds in major Korean cities.

Approximately half (40.9%) of the survey respondents reported providing oral health care for hospitalized patients but that relevant protocols were not available at most hospitals or wards (89.5%). Nurses working in an ICU were significantly more likely to provide oral health care than those working in general wards (83.9% vs 15.1%; P < .001). Most respondents (83.2%) were aware of the importance of providing oral health care for hospitalized patients; however, the proportion considering that such care should be provided by dental hygienists was greater than that considering it should be provided by nurses (36.4% vs 26.0%; P < .001). Agreement that oral health care should be provided for hospitalized patients by dental hygienists was highest in nurses working in ICUs (53.3%; P < .001).

According to this survey, oral healthcare provision is generally low in hospitalized patients and differs between ICUs and general wards. Most respondents considered that dental hygienists should provide oral health care for hospitalized patients. There is an opportunity for nurses and dental hygienists to work collaboratively towards development of an evidence-based protocol for oral health care in hospitalized patients.