Nurses' Knowledge about Pain Management Regarding Older Adults

Abstract

Relevance of the study: Pain is present everywhere; it is an essential part of life and has main protective function. It is also the foremost symptom that causes people seek medical attention. Uncontrolled pain, prolonged pain produces stress, inability to work and persistent stress. It thus becomes a disease itself. Persistent pain is influenced by the social environment, particularly how significant others, including health care providers, respond to reports of pain. All of these factors; individual, socio-cultural, health care, and compensation systems; were shown to have an extreme influence on perceived pain intensity, respond to treatment, and disability. To understand and to treat pain adequately, there must be able to measure it. At first, this seems to be a quite simple task because it can not be measured objectively. Insufficient knowledge toward pain management has also become a growing concern of health care. Aim of the study: To explore nurses' knowledge about pain management regarding older adults. Objectives of the study: 1) To reveal the level of nurses' knowledge about pain management of patients admitted to X hospital 2) To evaluate nurses’ knowledge about function of assessment as a measure of pain in older people. 3) To determine the side effects and complications of acute pain management, their prevention and management. 4) To determine the relationship among demographic variables and nurses’ knowledge about pain and pain management. Object of research: Nurses’ knowledge about pain management regarding older adults Methods of research: A descriptive cross-sectional survey were used. The study population was consisted of nurses who work in different elderly departments. The data was collected by using demographic questionnaire and an original questionnaire about pain management. Results: Nurses’ knowledge about pain management regarding older adults; The results showed that most of the nurses have inadequate knowledge about pain management. Even so, nurses want to have more training to improve their knowledge. Conclusion Based on the results of this study, it shows that some of the nurses have inadequate knowledge about pain management because they do not have additional trainings about pain management. As advice, it could be better to have some additional trainings, seminars, courses or conference to improve their knowledge. Majority of the respondents answered that the physician has to control over the patient’s pain management regiment. The majority of respondents would advise to call the physician if the patient continues to have pain after receiving the maximum ordered dose of analgesics. Thus, the research has revealed the nurses’ perception that responsibility over pain management is put firstly on the health system workers. However, what concerns the cancer patient’s pain the most accurate and reliable judge of the intensity of the patient’s pain is the patient himself/herself. As the experience of pain is different from person to person, pain also has impacts on patient’s health physically, psychologically, socially, economically and environmentally. This study showed that majority of the nurses who work in Geriatric department, their ages are from 50 to 59 that makes 53.3% of all nurses, and majority of the nurses working experience are from 20 years and more that equals to 66.6%. The distinct between their age group and their working experience is change in medicine in terms of technology. Then, it could be more productive to always have additional trainings to enhance their knowledge.