Using a Plastic Drape to Reduce Hypothermia in Premature Neonates During Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter Placement

Premature neonates require assisted heating devices for thermoregulation in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Traditional use of a cloth blanket and cloth towels during peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) placement may hinder heat transfer from the assisted heating mechanisms, increasing the risk for neonatal hypothermia.

This quality improvement project's goal was to reduce the hypothermia rate in very low birth-weight (VLBW) neonates by replacing cloth blanket/towels with a plastic drape during PICC placement.

The FOCUS-PDSA method was used to implement the intervention (plastic drape) over 3 months, during 58 PICC procedures in a level 3 NICU. A pre-/posttest design was used to evaluate the impact of the intervention on hypothermia rates compared with a baseline cloth group and a concurrent cloth cohort.

After the 3-month implementation period, the hypothermia rate for the intervention group was lower than that for the baseline cloth group (5.2% and 11.3%, respectively), but this difference was not statistically significant. Post-PICC hypothermia rates were significantly lower for the intervention group than for the concurrent cloth cohort (P = .004).

Preliminary evidence demonstrated the plastic drape reduced the hypothermia rate in the NICU for VLBW neonates during PICC placement compared with cloth blanket/towels. A plastic drape shows promise in improving nursing practice by providing improved thermoregulation for premature neonates during PICC placement.

Further research is recommended to replicate findings with larger samples of PICC insertions, using a plastic drape in the operating room and other NICU procedures.