Nursing Delirium Screening Scale, a Tool for Early Detection of Delirium: Integrative Review

Abstract

Nursing Delirium Screening Scale, una herramienta para la detección temprana del delírium: revisión integrativa Nursing Delirium Screening Scale, uma ferramenta para detectar precocemente o delírio: revisão integrativa Objective: To analyze the context and use of the Nursing Delirium Screening Scale (Nu-DESC) for early detection of delirium in adult patients, compiling the available evidence. Method: Searching for relevant articles on databases such as Cinahl, Medline, Ovid, Scopus, and Web of Science. Inclusion criteria: Articles written in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, published between January 2013 and October 2019. Search terms: “nursing delirium screen,” “inpatient delirium screening,” and “nursing assessment.” We identified 23 articles in which the Nu-DESC was used. Two reviewers independently assessed the articles using the CASPe (Critical Appraisal Skills Program in Spanish) tool. Results: The Nu-DESC is employed in different contexts such as the adult intensive care unit (ICU), post-anesthetic care unit (PACU), palliative care unit, and hospitalization unit. It is more frequently used in the PACU with a more sensitive threshold (≥ 1); the test showed greater sensitivity of 54.5 % (95 % CI: 32.2–75.6) and specificity of 97.1 % (95 % CI: 95.3–98.4). Conclusion: The Nu-DESC facilitates the recognition of delirium episodes by the nursing team, makes care quicker and individualized for each patient, avoiding immediate pharmacological interventions, and coordinate interdisciplinary actions for diagnosis, especially in post-anesthetic care units. Para citar este artículo / To reference this article / Para citar este artigo Henao-Castaño AM, Pachón LE, Monroy JD. Nursing Delirium Screening Scale, a Tool for Early Detection of Delirium: Integrative Review. Aquichan. 2020;20(4):e2045. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5294/aqui.2020.20.4.5 Recibido: 09/03/2020 Aceptado: 14/08/2020 Publicado: 04/12/2020

Keywords

• Delirium
• Nu-DESC
• screening
• nursing
• assessment
• critical care