Effectiveness of Oral Hygiene and Head-Up 30–45° Bundle for Reducing VAP Risk in ICU

Melda (Program Studi Sarjana Keperawatan, Fakultas Kesehatan Universitas Sari Mulia)
M. Sobirin Mohtar (Program Studi Sarjana Keperawatan, Fakultas Kesehatan Universitas Sari Mulia)
Eirene E.M Gaghauna (Program Studi Sarjana Keperawatan, Fakultas Kesehatan Universitas Sari Mulia)

Jurnal Keperawatan Priority
Vol. 9 No. 2 (2026)

in an intensive care unit (ICU). VAP is mostly caused by bacterial colonization of the respiratory system, which may increase morbidity, mortality, length of stay and medical expenditures. This research was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of oral hygiene and the 30–45° head-up position as a bundle in lowering VAP risk in mechanically ventilated ICU patients. Methods: This was a quantitative pre-experimental one-group pretest-posttest design research. A purposive sampling method was used to select 25 patients. Measurements were taken before the intervention and 48 hours after the intervention. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon test, with a significance threshold of 0.05. After the intervention, the mean CPIS score reduced from 6.84 to 2.96. The Wilcoxon test indicated a significant difference between the CPIS scores before and after the intervention (p = 0.000), indicating a reduction in CPIS following the implementation of the bundle. Oral hygiene twice a day with 0.2% chlorhexidine and a 30–45° head-up position may contribute to reducing VAP risk in mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit, although the observed reduction cannot be attributed solely to the bundle because of the study design.