Nursing Foundations · Hygiene

Hygiene

Personal hygienedefinition

Self-care practices that maintain bodily cleanliness and health — oral hygiene, bathing, shaving, nail cutting and combing.

in simple words: Daily cleaning of the body to stay healthy and prevent disease.

e.g. Bathing, brushing teeth, cutting nails, combing hair.

Why it matters

Good personal hygiene is a fundamental principle for promoting health and preventing disease — it breaks the chain of infection by removing or reducing pathogens on the body. Adequate skin hygiene maintains skin integrity, the body's first line of defence against harmful microorganisms. Poor oral health is linked to systemic diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Hygiene agents – Know the difference

Deodorants — neutralize or mask bad odour (mask with fragrance or kill odour-causing bacteria).
Detergents — surfactants that remove dirt, oil and stains; function is cleaning, not odour control.
Germicides — kill microorganisms; broader action than odour control.
Antiseptics — prevent growth of disease-causing organisms on living tissue; used for infection prevention.

Effects of neglected hygiene

Skin – Skin breakdown, pressure injuries, infections
Mouth – Stomatitis
General – Infections spread; nurse loses chance to assess skin and give comfort

Hygiene · Nursing Foundations

Bathing & Bath Types

Bathing

Daily bathing with soap and water is an effective measure to control body odour — it removes sweat, oils and bacteria. Bathing during menstruation is safe and recommended for perineal hygiene: it washes away blood and bacteria, prevents odour and infection, and warm baths soothe cramps.

Bed bathdefinition

General hygiene for patients who are immobile and cannot leave bed.

in simple words: Cleaning at the bedside — not a treatment.

Therapeutic bathdefinition

Prescribed for a specific medical purpose — reducing pain, inflammation or promoting healing.

in simple words: A bath given as treatment, e.g. sitz bath for perineal problems.

Sitz bath — key numbers

Point	Value / detail
Water temperature	38–40°C (100–105°F)
Duration	15–20 minutes
Solution	Plain warm water (antiseptic only if required: potassium permanganate or povidone-iodine)
Avoid	Boric acid — skin irritation and systemic toxicity if absorbed through broken skin

A plastic sitz bath tub that fits over a toilet seat, used for warm water perineal soaking. — Sitz bath tub for perineal care

Hygiene · Nursing Foundations

Bathing & Bath Types (contd.)

Hygiene · Nursing Foundations

Care Procedures

Oral care in the unconscious

The priority concern during oral hygiene for an unconscious patient is preventing aspiration. These patients have a diminished or absent gag reflex, so fluids and secretions can enter the lungs and cause aspiration pneumonia. Suction equipment must be at the bedside before starting oral care in any patient with a compromised consciousness level or impaired swallowing.

Eye care sequence

Inner canthusStart cleaning here
Outer canthusWipe outward — keeps debris away from the nasolacrimal duct
Infected eye lastSeparate wipe for each eye to prevent cross-contamination

Bed linen terms

Mitered corner — folded corner of bed linen secured at a 45-degree angle under the mattress; keeps sheets smooth and tight, preventing wrinkles that cause skin irritation and pressure ulcers.
Toe pleat — loose fold at the foot of the bed to relieve pressure from linens on the feet; used with a foot cradle or in patients at high risk for foot drop, instead of a tight mitered corner.