Urinary tract infections in patients with urinary catheterization receiving home health service: A prevalence study

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of urinary tract infections in patients with urinary catheterization receiving home health services and the affecting factors. The population of this descriptive study consisted of patients who had lived in the central districts of Erzurum between February and March 2022, were actively registered to home health services, had a urinary catheter and met the research criteria. The period prevalence method (3 months) was used in the study, and 121 patients constituted the study sample. The study data were collected using a Sociodemographic and Information Form on Urinary Catheter. Before the home visit, patients' relatives were asked to clamp the urinary catheter. After completing the data collection forms, a sufficient amount of urine was taken from the attached urinary catheter, put into the urine and culture cup/tube, and labelled with a barcode. The samples were sent to the laboratory within 15 min at the latest. The medical specialist evaluated the results, and the necessary pharmacological treatment was delivered to the patient. Of the patients with indwelling urinary catheters who received home health services, 94.2% had a urinary tract infection. Moreover, it was determined that there was a statistically significant correlation between the presence of urinary tract infection in patients and the variables of constipation, frequency of perineal cleaning, and the use of toilet paper. It was concluded that the prevalence of urinary tract infections is very high in patients with urinary catheterization receiving home health services.