Assessment of knowledge and practice of nurses on initial management of acute poisoning in Dessie referral hospital Amhara region, Ethiopia, 2018

Assessment of Knowledge and Awareness Among Nurses of a Tertiary Care Hospital Regarding the Management of Acute Poisoning: A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND

Poisoning is a major health issue worldwide. Nurses are frequently the first healthcare professionals to come in contact with patients with acute poisoning. So, this study was conducted to assess the knowledge and awareness regarding the management of acute poisoning among nurses. In case of insufficient knowledge, they could be trained enough to manage any case of acute poisoning for life-saving purposes.

METHODOLOGY

This was a cross-sectional analytical study conducted among 212 nurses at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand from July 2021 to December 2021. Data were collected using the structured questionnaire based on a previous study and regression analysis was used for determining the association between their overall knowledge score and independent variables like age, education, experience, and training status.

RESULTS

More than one-third (43.8%) of the study participants had an unsatisfactory level of knowledge, which might be because of a lack of proper training and experience, but still, 42.4% and 13.6% of the study participants had satisfactory and good knowledge, respectively. Moreover, more than one-third (45.2%) of the study participants had inefficient skills, while 48.1% and 6.6% of nurses had satisfactory and good skills, respectively, in the management of acute poisoning. The three independent variables (training, experience, and education) showed a 53.1% association with total scores in bivariate regression analysis while no significant association was seen between age and score in multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

About half of the nurses showed unsatisfactory knowledge, so they need improvement and they should be trained regarding this to reduce mortality among acute poisoning cases.

Emergency department nurses’ perceptions of caring for patients with intentional self-poisoning: a qualitative study

Nurses have an important role in caring for patients with intentional self-poisoning. This study was attempted to explore the emergency department nurses' perception of caring for patients with intentional self-poisoning. The present qualitative study was performed using phenomenological method. This study was done on 14 emergency department nurses with experience in caring for patients with intentional self-poisoning. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi's method. Following data analysis, two themes and five sub-themes were extracted, which included being reluctant to provide care for patients with intentional self-poisoning (discomfort in providing care, and lack of desire to care for these patients) and comprehensive patient support (providing complete care and emotional support). Given that emergency department nurses are the first medical staff who face with intentional self-poisoning patients and play an important role in the care and treatment of these patients, it is necessary to improve their understanding of caring for these patients. In addition, their comprehensive support for these patients should be strengthened. Psychological support for nurses and training them on how to communicate with intentional self-poisoning patients and their families are also recommended.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Nurses Toward the Initial Managements of Acute Poisoning in Public Hospitals of Bahir Dar City, Northwest Ethiopia 2022: Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction

Poisoning is a common cause of medical visits and hospitalizations around the world. The knowledge, attitude, and practice of nurses in the management of acute poisoning are very poor in developing countries, such as Ethiopia. According to the previous study, 75% and 45% of nurses had unsatisfactory knowledge and practice, respectively.

Objectives

This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of nurses toward the initial management of acute poisoning.

Method

An institution-based cross-sectional study design was used to recruit 422 nurses from public hospitals of Bahir Dar city in Ethiopia. A systematic random sampling method and an English version of self-administered questionnaires were used to collect the data. The data were entered into Epi Data and analyzed using SPSS version 25.

Results

The study recruited 422 nurses, with a response rate of 100%; 248 (58.8%) and 264 (62.2%) of the nurses had good knowledge and practice, respectively. Slightly more than half (57.6%) of the nurses had a positive attitude. Nurses who worked in an emergency and intensive care unit had twice the odds of having more knowledge and practice than those who worked in an outpatient department (AOR = 2.1, CI: (1.019, 4.540), p = 0.001). Nurses who have MSc degree were twice (AOR = 2.1, CI: (1.019, 4.540), p = 0.001) and three times (AOR = 3.1, CI: (1.012, 7.140), p = 0.002) to have good knowledge and practice than those who have a diploma.

Conclusion

Slightly more than half of nurses had good knowledge, practice, and a positive attitude. Educational status, working in an emergency department, and having training in poison management have been significantly associated with the knowledge and practice of nurses. The authors recommended that there is a need to empower the attitude, knowledge, and practice of nurses through consistent training, accessing, and updating guidelines (poisoning management protocol). The author also suggested that the poison management protocol be incorporated into the Ethiopian nursing curriculum (certificates).

Understanding Research Study Designs

In this article, we will look at the important features of various types of research study designs used commonly in biomedical research.

How to cite this article

Ranganathan P. Understanding Research Study Designs. Indian J Crit Care Med 2019;23(Suppl 4):S305-S307.