Assessment of Nurses’ knowledge and Practices regarding Children with Acute Pancreatitis.

Abstract

Background Acute pancreatitis is an emerging problem in pediatrics, with mostcases resolving spontaneously. It is characterized by inflammation of the pancreas,the presence of interstitial edema, infiltration, necrosis and haemorrhage. The studyaim was to asses nurses' knowledge and practice regarding children with acutepancreatitis. Design: A descriptive research design was utilized Subjects: All nurses(79) who were working in Paediatric Medical Department of Tanta Main UniversityHospital and (51) from Paediatric Department and Paediatric Intensive Care Unit ofKafer-Elsheikh University Hospital. Tools: two tools were utilized. Tool I:knowledge Structured questionnaire. Tool II: Observational Checklist about nurses'practice regarding acute pancreatitis. Results: nearly two thirds of the studied nurseshad high level of knowledge about acute pancreatitis, while more than three quartersof them had satisfactory practice level. Conclusion: pediatric nurses had high levelof knowledge and satisfactory level of practice regarding acute pancreatitis inchildren. Recommendations: Implementing regular and continuous educationalprogram about children's acute pancreatitis to increase nurses' knowledge andpractice for those children. Keywords: Acute Pancreatitis, Assessment, Children,Nurses and Practices.