NCT06620146

The Short-Term and Long-Term Effects of Providing Mechanical Bath in Terminally Ill Patients

The Short-Term and Long-Term Effects of Providing Mechanical Bath in Terminally Ill Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 245 (actual)
• Sponsor: National Taiwan University Hospital · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Providing mechanical bathing (MB) is a commonly used strategy to maintain cleanness and comfort in patients with terminally illness. However, extra devices, costs, and human resources are required for such service. There is also a lack of evidence systematically examining the benefits of using MB. These extra financial and resource burden and insufficient evidence limit the use of MB in hospice clinical settings. The aim of this study is to examine whether more frequent MB can improve hospice patients' and their caregivers' comfort. The study has two phases. The first preparation phase is for questionnaire translation and piloting. The second phase is a randomized controlled trail in which adult hospice patients admitted to a hospice unit will be randomly assigned to intervention or control group. Participants in the intervention group will be provided MB every other day for a week while participants in the control group receive routine care (using MB once a week). The primary outcome is patients' level of comfort as measured by questionnaire and physical indicators. The secondary outcome is caregivers' emotional burden. Data collection will occur before, during, and after the intervention. The estimation sample sizes for the two phases are 200-250 and 80, respectively. Descriptive analysis and generalized estimating equations will be employed to analyze data. The results of this study will fully recognize the short-term and long-term effects of MB. This understanding can then serve as a foundation to standardize the frequency of providing MB and justify for the resources needed for providing MB.

Conditions

• Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing
• Terminally Ill Patients

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	mechanical bathing	Providing mechanical bathing (MB) is a commonly used strategy to maintain cleanness and comfort in patients with terminally illness. The electric medical bathtub (ARJO, Rhapsody) provides functions such as showering, bathing, and water massage. The MB will be operated by 2-3 nursing staff, trained hospice volunteers, or researchers. Each patient\'s MB process lasts about 20 minutes, including washing the hair and body with a handheld showerhead, followed by soaking in warm water for about 5-10 minutes. Based on the patient preference, the water temperature is adjusted between 38 to 40 degrees Celsius.

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-06-05
• Primary completion: 2024-09-27
• Completion: 2024-09-27
• First posted: 2024-10-01
• Last updated: 2025-06-11

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Taiwan