Surgical Patients' Evaluation of Pain Management Quality and Surgical Nurses' Pain-Related Knowledge and Attitudes.

PURPOSE: The present study was aimed at investigating the quality of pain management evaluated by inpatients in surgical clinics, and pain-related knowledge and attitudes of nurses working in surgical clinics, surgical units, or emergency services.

METHODS: The study was conducted as a descriptive and cross-sectional study. The study data were collected from inpatients in surgical clinics (N = 306), and from nurses working in surgical clinics, surgical units, or emergency services (N = 57) between January 2020 and September 2020. The Revised American Pain Society Patient Outcome Questionnaire (APS-POQ-R) and Nurses' Knowledge and Attitudes Survey Regarding Pain (NKASRP) were the tools used for data collection.

RESULTS: The mean scores the participants obtained from the severity of worst pain, pain relief, and satisfaction with pain treatment components of the APS-POQ-R were 6.14 ± 2.59, 59.28 ± 22.26, and 8.99 ± 1.62, respectively. There were significant differences between many components of the APS-POQ-R in terms of such variables as age, sex, undergoing previous surgery, presence of pain before surgery, surgery performed, and type of anesthesia (p < .05). The mean score the participants obtained from the NKASRP was 15.35 ± 3.87.

CONCLUSIONS: It was concluded that the patients' pain was relieved moderately, that they were very highly satisfied with pain treatment, and that the nurses' pain-related knowledge and attitude levels were below the moderate level.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Nurses should support patients whose in-bed activities were prevented due to pain, involve them in pain treatment decisions, advise them about pain treatment options, and encourage them to use nonpharmacological methods.