ORIGINAL ARTICLE Pediatric skin care: What do nurses really know? Jennifer Drake, Wendi S. Redfern, Eileen Sherburne, Melodee L. Nugent, and Pippa Simpson Jennifer Drake, RN, MS, CPN, is a Nurse and Clinical Nursing Instructor, Neuroscience Unit; Wendi S. Redfern, MSN, RN, CCRN, is an Advanced Practice Nurse, Department of Advanced Practice Nursing, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin; Eileen Sherburne, MS, ACNS-BC, FNP-BC, CRRN, WCC, is an Advanced Practice Nurse, Department of Advanced Practice Nursing, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin; Melodee L. Nugent, MA, is a Pediatric Biostatistician; and Pippa Simpson, PhD, is a Section Chief Director, Professor—Pediatrics, Quantitative Health Sciences, Children’s Research Institute, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA Search terms Attitude, barrier, behavior, belief, evidence-based practice, facilitator, knowledge, nursing, pediatrics, perception, practice, pressure sore, pressure ulcer, prevention, research utilization, skin care, skin integrity. Author contact wredfern@chw.org, with a copy to the Editor: roxie.foster@ucdener.edu Acknowledgements This project was supported by the Sophie Schroeder Endowment Fund. The authors wish to thank Shelly Malin PhD, RN, NEA-BC, Karen Gralton, RN, MS, PCNS-BC, Children’s Research Institute, and Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin Nursing Research Council for their advice and encouragement. Disclosure: The authors report no actual or potential conflicts of interest. This research was funded in part by Sophie Schroeder Endowment Fund. First Received October 12, 2011; Revision received March 8, 2012; Accepted for publication June 23, 2012. doi: 10.1111/j.1744-6155.2012.00342.x Abstract Purpose. The purpose of this study was to explore pediatric nurses’ knowl- edge of pressure ulcer prevention, investigate their beliefs and practices, and identify the barriers and facilitators to providing evidence-based pres- sure ulcer preventive practices. Design and Methods. An exploratory, descriptive, and cross-sectional survey was taken of registered nurses in a freestanding children’s hospital. Results. Nurses have adequate knowledge of general pressure ulcer pre- vention; however, they struggle with individualization. Further, analysis revealed that nursing knowledge did not always correlate with nursing practice. Practice Implications. Nurses require education on individualized inter- ventions and access to user-friendly, interactive, and comprehensive resources, including unit-based champions and order sets. From local to national organizations, private and public, pressure ulcer prevention is a priority for insti- tutional goals. Despite these efforts, pressure ulcers remain a significant threat for hospitalized and immobilized populations. While often seen as an issue of the elderly and in the nursing home setting, pressure ulcers also adversely affect infants and children and remain a major concern in pediatric inpatient facilities with prevalence in pediatric patients ranging from 1.6% to 27.7% (McLane, Bookout, McCord, McCain, & Jefferson, 2004; Noonan, Quigley, & Curley, 2006; Schindler et al., 2007; Schluer, Cignacco, Muller, & Halfens, 2009), resulting in pain, infection, disfigurement, altered body image, and mortality, as well as increased costs, length of stay, and litigation (Baharestani & Ratliff, 2007). In the past, pressure ulcers in children were not recognized as an issue; as the industry has become more knowledgeable through research, national patient safety goals, and certifying bodies (i.e., Med- icaid reimbursement, Magnet recognition, and Joint Commission), it has become apparent in the last decade that the issue of pressure ulcer prevention needs to be addressed in the pediatric setting. Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing 329 Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing 17 (2012) 329–338 © 2012, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.