The document presents a literature review on catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) in ICUs, emphasizing the role of nurses in prevention through aseptic technique and hand hygiene. It reviews eight studies published between 2014 and 2018, addressing research questions related to effective prevention methods, hospital roles, and catheter handling techniques, while also identifying limitations such as a lack of comprehensive solutions. The findings suggest a need for further research and highlight that addressing healthcare-associated infections can significantly reduce CAUTI rates.

1. Running head: ANALYSIS OF LITERATURE REVIEW 1
ANALYSIS OF LITERATURE REVIEW 7
Literature Review
Atsede Iyasu
NRS-490- 0500- Professional Capstone and Practicum
Grand Canyon University
08/11/2019
Analysis of Literature Review
Introduction
Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) more so in
the ICU seems to be an issue that is challenging hospitals and
health care centers. Nurses are the healthcare staffs who are
responsible for ensuring that patients do not acquire CAUTI in
their stay in the ICU (Mody et al., 2015). There are proven
techniques and methods identified to be effective at preventing
the catheter associated urinary tract infection. One technique
that is highly mentioned in the prevention of CAUTI is strict
aseptic technique and hand hygiene. The technique can
significantly help nurses reduce CAUTI in intensive care units
and lessen the health burden of patients in the intensive care
unit (Bradley et al., 2018).
In order to confirm whether the above-mentioned technique is
effective at preventing CAUTI, a literature review was carried

2. out. The review touched on these method as well as other known
methods or techniques for preventing CAUTI. A total of eight
studies were reviewed. All the reviewed studies were on
publications made between 2014 and 2018. It is important that
the studies reviewed are not over five years old. The above was
important as it ensured only relevant and up-to-date information
established from the review. Comment by Shanna Foley: Great
introduction. Be sure your thesis discusses the purpose of the
current paper, not the purpose of your change proposal.
A comparison of the research questions
There were three main research questions that were identified in
the studies reviewed. The first main research question identified
was whether there was an effective scientific method of
preventing CAUTI (Purvis et al., 2014). Five of the studies
reviewed were interested in answering whether there is a well-
known and established medical interventions or scientific
interventions that can effectively prevent CAUTI. All the five
studies are driven by the hypothesis that CAUTI can be
prevented and treated by given medication and it is for the
above reason that all the five studies were seeking to confirm
whether medical interventions can effectively prevent the
infection.
The second main research question was what is the role of
hospitals or health centers in the acquiring of CAUTI?
According to a publication done in 2017 by Theobald and his
colleagues, Hospital conditions are the primary reasons that
patients acquire CAUTI. The conditions being mentioned above
include; general hospital cleanliness practices and the handling
of patients. The third main research question identified was
whether the method of administering and removing the catheter
was the main reason that patients were acquiring CAUTI. Three
of the studies reviewed seemed to run on the hypothesis that the
main reason that CAUTIs are acquired is that the techniques of
inserting and removing the catheters are not safe and are the
loopholes that bacteria utilize to cause CAUTI (Trautner et al.,
2015). Comment by Shanna Foley: Very good!

3. Comparison of the sample populations in the study
All the studies reviewed carried out their studies on large
sample populations. Of all the eight studies the lowest
population studied was 205 patients and it was on a study
published in 2015 (Kwaan et al., 2015). The largest study
population was 1500 patients and it was on a study published in
2014. The sample populations used in the study incorporated
diverse populations as people from different ethnic backgrounds
and ethnicities were part of the studies. One of the studies
concentrated on hospital statistics on CAUTI whereas there was
another study that concentrated on the number of bed days that
patients suffering from CAUTIs took up in the treatment of the
infection. Comment by Shanna Foley: Doing so helps with
validity! Good. Comment by Shanna Foley: My only critique
here is that you need to follow up the sentences that say… One
of the studies, or In five of the studies… you need to place the
in-text citation with all of the journals. You will just put the
multiple citations. (author(s), date) (author, date) (author, date)
A comparison of the limitations of the studies
There were two main limitations of the studies that were
analysed. The limitations seemed to cut across all the eight
publications. The first limitation of the studies was that they
overlooked other aspects or factors that could influence the
development of CAUTI (Sabir et al., 2017). Each study had a
particular factor or attribute leading to CAUTI that was being
investigated. The above statement implies that the concentration
on what was being investigated made other factors crucial to the
development and prevention of CAUTI. The second main
limitation of the eight studies was that none of the eight studies
gave a concrete solution to the CAUTI challenge. None of the
conclusions made from the studied gave a definite answer on
how to prevent the disease. Six out of the eight studies
concentrated on dealing with CAUTI as opposed to preventing it
in the first place. A minor limitation of the studies that were
analyzed was that little behavioral study of the causation of
CAUTI was carried out (Babich et al., 2017). Comment by

4. Shanna Foley: Very good!
Conclusions
According to the study findings as well as the limitations
identified, it is very clear that there is a need for further
research to be carried out on CAUTI. Based on the literature
review, the prevention of CAUTI is possible through mixed
methods; through the use of medical interventions and through
the practice of health hygiene by the nursing staff. All the
articles reviewed stated that unhealthy nursing practices such as
the wrong technique of administering the catheter were the
primary reason as to why CAUTI is a challenge in the health
sector more so in intensive care units. In conclusion, according
to the literature review, the controlling healthcare-acquired
infections is directly related to the urinary tract infections
related to the catheter; by controlling health acquired
infections, hospitals and health centers would reduce the
likelihood of CAUTI by almost 35% (Theobald et al., 2017 ).
Comment by Shanna Foley: Very good job!
References Comment by Shanna Foley: Make sure this is at
the top of the next page.
Babich, T., Zusman, O., Elbaz, M., Ben-Zvi, H., Paul, M.,
Leibovici, L., & Avni, T. (2017). Empirical antibiotic treatment
does not improve outcomes in catheter-associated urinary tract

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Kwaan, M. R., Lee, J. T., Rothenberger, D. A., Melton, G. B., &
Madoff, R. D. (2015). Early removal of urinary catheters after
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Mody, L., Meddings, J., Edson, B. S., McNamara, S. E.,
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