A Study of the Nurses' Knowledge and Attitude about Pain Management

Hwang, Kyung-Hee; Ryoo, Eon-Na; Park, Kyung-Sook

The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education 2007;13(1):41-51.
Published online June 30, 2007.

Hwang, Kyung-Hee;Ryoo, Eon-Na;Park, Kyung-Sook;

¹Department of Nursing, Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital. College of Medicine, Hallym University
²Department of Nursing. Andong Science College
³Department of Nursing. College of Medicine, Chung-Ang University

통증관리에 대한 간호사의 지식과 태도에 관한 연구

황경희, 류언나, 박경숙

¹한림대학교 의료원 강남 성심병원
²안동과학대학 간호과
³중앙대학교 의과대학 간호학과

Abstract

Purpose
This research studied the nurses' knowledge and attitude about pain management. Method: The research subjects were 465 nurses working at three university hospitals in Seoul and at one university hospital in Kyunggi-do. The survey results were collected between October 13 and 21 in 2004. Result: The overall mean score of correct answers on knowledge about pain management was 73.34, general knowledge 71.08, and cancer pain control was 93.93. Similarly, the mean score of correct answers on knowledge about the classification of analgesics was 75.89, while the knowledge of their use was only 52.48. The overall characteristics related to the degree of the nurses' knowledge about pain management were their educational background and their experiences of pain education. In a similar view, the overall characteristics related to the knowledge about the classification of analgesics were age and religion. Likewise, the use of analgesics was related to field of service and the experience of pain education. Finally, the overall characteristics related to the nurse's attitude toward pain management were their field of service and their position. Conclusion: The results of this study could be useful to institutions involved in the education and application of patient pain management.

Key Words: Nurse, Pain, Knowledge, Attitude