Effect of a Bathing Care Package on Comfort and Skin Moisture in Preterm Infants in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Participants receive a bathing care package that includes a swaddled immersion bath. Room temperature is maintained at 26-27°C with 40-60% humidity. Bath water temperature is controlled at 37-38°C. The infant is swaddled and immersed in water up to the shoulders while the head remains above water. The bath lasts no longer than 5 minutes. After bathing, the infant is gently dried without rubbing, wrapped in a towel, and placed in a pre-warmed incubator (31-34°C) for 10 minutes.

Participants receive routine bathing care according to NICU standards. This includes hand hygiene before the procedure, preparing necessary materials, placing the infant in a mesh sling in the bath, washing the body from clean to dirty areas with soft sponges and hospital-provided cleansing agents. The bath lasts up to 10 minutes. After bathing, the infant is quickly dried without rubbing and then diapered.