As per a study published in Nursing for Women’s Health aimed to implement an organization-wide evidence-based practice change to parent-performed, delayed immersion newborn bathing across nine facilities at a military healthcare system.

This was organization-wide evidence-based practice initiative using pre-implementation and post-implementation data, conducted in the setting of a military health system. The study included term newborns (≥37 weeks gestation) born within nine facilities. Here, baths for newborns were delayed until 24 hours of age, unless otherwise requested. Parents were instructed to tub bathe their newborn and encouraged to complete the bath in less than 5 minutes. The team reviewed 100 records from each hospital and compared pre- and postimplementation temperature data.

The results of the change showed a statistically significant association between time point (i.e., before vs. after implementation) and post-bathing hypothermia. In addition, data also indicated fewer hypothermic temperature readings from the onset of birth until 8 hours of life with the new bathing process. Although this difference was not statistically significant.

In inference it was stated that newborns first bath was associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of hypothermic temperature readings in this population, immediately after bath. The intervention involved minimal cost with multiple benefits. 

Source: Nursing for Women’s Health.2021 Feb;25(1):63-70.doi: 10.1016/j.nwh.2020.11.006.