Oxygen Therapy:Assessing Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Nurses Working in Three Selected Hospitals in the Tarkwansuaem Municipality

Abstract

Oxygen therapy has been an important aspect in clinical practice for more than 20 decades. Oxygen is an undeniable live-saving gas when its double-edged nature is evaluated appropriately. Hence, as its administration plays a vital role in nursing practice, it is imperative for nurses and midwives to ensure that patients are provided with only the therapeutic characters of oxygen therapy while the toxic characters are prevented. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude and practice of nurses and midwives regarding oxygen therapy. In this study, a quantitative, cross-sectional hospital-based study was conducted, covering 207 nurses and midwives of which 182 survey responses were valid for data analysis. Data was analysed with descriptive and inferential parametric statistics. In this study, participants demonstrated knowledge, attitude and practice gap on oxygen therapy. 1.10% of the participates had adequate knowledge (≥ 80) with about 4 out of 10 (37.91%) participants having satisfactory attitude, which is low level of attitude. More so, in relation to the practice in oxygen therapy, none of the nurses and midwives could be categorized to have safe practice. Likewise, majority of the participants (60.44%) reported not to have adequate resources in their hospitals. Key recommendations include a need for periodic retraining on oxygen therapy to enhance attitude and knowledge of nurses and midwives and to ensure standard quality of nursing practice in this area.