Knowledge and Attitudes of New Graduate Nurses on the Prevention of Pressure Ulcers

Abstract

Pressure ulcer is an important problem for both patients and healthcare system they are included in. This descriptive cross-sectional study aims to investigate the knowledge and attitudes of new graduate nurses on the prevention of pressure ulcers. The study was conducted with 70 nursing students, graduated in the 2017-2018 academic year from the nursing department of the faculty of health sciences of a state university. The data were collected using a 20-item questionnaire, developed in line with the literature to evaluate the demographics of new graduate nurses and their knowledge on pressure ulcer prevention, and using the Attitude Scale towards Pressure Ulcer Prevention (APUP). The average age of the new graduate nurses participating in the study was 22,82±1,77, 82.9% of them were female, 65,7% took wound care courses, and 91,4% provided care to the patient with pressure wounds in practice. The knowledge score average of new graduate nurses about pressure ulcer prevention was 16,74±1,68, and the their total score average on the APUP scale was 36,04±2,26 (69.30%). There was no significant difference between the APUP score averages and the knowledge score averages of the nurses who provided care to the patient with pressure ulcers, during the practice training. New graduate nurses were found to have a moderate level of knowledge and attitudes on the prevention of pressure ulcers. Attitudes develop and change as a result of experiences or events over time. It is believed that the attitudes of new graduate nurses, in their professional life, will improve in line with the experiences gained during the one-to-one care provided to the patients with pressure ulcers.