Effect of Nursing Intervention Guidelines on Nurses’ Role, Patients’ Needs, and Visual Problems Post Cataract Surgery

Abstract

In Egypt, cataract is the major cause of blindness of the population aged 65 years or older. Inadequate postoperative nursing care may lead to serious complications for the patient with cataract surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the use of nursing guidelines on nurses' knowledge and practices and on their achievement of patients' needs post cataract surgery. This quasi-experimental pre-post assessment study was carried out on 34 nurses working at the outpatient clinics and ophthalmology departments in El Ramad Hospital, Rod El Farag, Cairo, affiliated to Ministry of Health and 34 patients undergoing cataract surgery in the setting. Data collection tools were a self-administered questionnaire and an observation checklist. The researcher developed nursing guidelines based on analysis of the data collected in the assessment phase to provide nurses with guides for care of cataract patients after surgery. The evaluation of the guidelines' effects on nurses' knowledge and practice, and consequently on patients' needs was carried out immediately after implementation (post-test), and 3 months after (follow-up). The results showed statistically significant improvements in nurses' knowledge and practice at the post and follow-up tests (p<0.001), with statistically significant strong positive correlation (r=0.714) between them. Also, there were statistically significant improvements in all areas of patient needs after implementation (p<0.001). In multivariate analysis, the intervention was a statistically significant independent positive predictor of the improvement in nurses' knowledge and practice, and of patients' needs. In conclusion, implementing nursing guidelines for care of cataract patients after surgery is effective in inducing improvements in nurses' related knowledge and practice, which better achievement of patients' needs. It is recommended that these guidelines be used in similar settings. Further research is proposed to investigate the effect of the implementation of these guidelines on decreasing the incidence of complications after the surgical technique.