title: The epidemiology of skin care provided by nurses at home: a multicentre prevalence study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to estimate the frequencies and patterns of skin care and applied skin care products in the home care nursing setting in Germany.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Skin care belongs to the core activities of nursing practice. Especially in aged and long-term care settings, clients are vulnerable to various skin conditions. Dry skin is one of the most prevalent problems. Using mild skin cleansers and the regular application of moisturizing leave-on products is recommended. Until today, there are no quantitative empirical data about nursing skin care practice at home in the community.
  
  
  METHODS
  A multicentre cross-sectional study was conducted in July 2012.
  
  
  METHODS
  Home care clients from the German home care nursing setting were randomly selected. Instructed nurse raters performed the data collection using standardized forms. Variables included demographics, skin care needs and skin caring activities.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Approximately 60% of home care clients received skin care interventions. The majority were washed and two-thirds received a leave-on product once daily. There was large heterogeneity in cleansing and skin care product use. Most often the product labels were unknown or product types were selected haphazardly.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Skin care interventions play a significant role in home care and nurses have a considerable responsibility for skin health. Skin care provided does not meet recent recommendations. The importance of targeted skin cleansing and care might be underestimated. There are a confusing variety of skin care products available and often the labels provide little information regarding the ingredients or guidance about how they affect skin health.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center for Hair and Skin Science, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kottner
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Boronat
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Blume-Peytavi
authors.forename: Nils
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lahmann
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Suhr
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003358:Cosmetics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000592:standards; D003879:Dermatologic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006699:Home Care Services; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011364:Professional Practice; D017592:Skin Care / Q000451:nursing*; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000451:nursing*
chemical_list: D003358:Cosmetics; D003879:Dermatologic Agents
keywords: cosmetic products; emollients; home care nursing service; moisturizers; nurse; nursing; prevalence; skin care; skin integrity