Knowledge and Attitudes of Nursing Students Regarding Children's Pain.

BACKGROUND

Although the occurrence of pain among hospitalized children is inevitable, the way to assess and detect the intensity of pain is still challenging to pediatric professionals and may lead to increased morbidity and mortality rates if left untreated. The knowledge base of nurses regarding both pharmacological and non-pharmacological pain management among children plays a significant role in managing and making a management plan. The purpose of this study was to assess nursing students' knowledge and attitudes toward pediatric pain management.

METHODS

This study used a cross-sectional design to investigate the knowledge and attitudes regarding pain and its management among undergraduate nursing students at a university. A convenience sample of students from all levels was obtained. The pediatric nurses knowledge and attitudes survey (PNKAS) regarding pain was used. Data were analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22 (Released 2013; IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, USA).

RESULTS

In this study, 86.3% of participants (n = 69) scored within the satisfactory range on the PNKAS, suggesting adequate knowledge and attitudes about pediatric pain management. The results showed there was no significant relationship between age and a total score p-value of 0.740, as well as between academic levels and the same p-value of 0.397.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the importance of undergraduate nursing education in pediatric pain management. The findings suggest that students may benefit from additional training in pain assessment and pharmacological interventions.