The Level of Knowledge Among Nurses Regarding Care of Patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy at Najran Hospitals, Saudi Arabia

Sadeq Abdo Mohammed Alwesabi; Yahya Hussein Ahmed Abdalla; Elsadig Eltaher Abdulrahman; Abdalla Mohamed Ahmed Osman; Mugahed Ali Alkhadher; Faroq Abdulghani Alshameri; Manal S A Hakami; Waled A M Ahmed

doi:10.2147/IJGM.S437818

The Level of Knowledge Among Nurses Regarding Care of Patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy at Najran Hospitals, Saudi Arabia

Int J Gen Med. 2023 Oct 18:16:4719-4727. doi: 10.2147/IJGM.S437818. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Sadeq Abdo Mohammed Alwesabi¹, Yahya Hussein Ahmed Abdalla², Elsadig Eltaher Abdulrahman¹, Abdalla Mohamed Ahmed Osman², Mugahed Ali Alkhadher¹, Faroq Abdulghani Alshameri³, Manal S A Hakami⁴, Waled A M Ahmed^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Medical and Surgical Nursing Department, Nursing College, Najran University, Najran, Saudi Arabia.
² Community and Mental Health Nursing Department, Nursing College, Najran University, Najran, Saudi Arabia.
³ Nursing Department, Faculty of Medical Sciences and Nursing, Al-Rayan College, Almadina, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Nursing Department, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Al-Baha University, Al-Baha, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Postgraduate Studies, Al-Saeeda University, Sana'a, Yemen.

Abstract

Background/aim: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a significant complication of acute and chronic liver disease. It is crucial for nurses to have knowledge of encephalopathy symptoms to enable prompt and effective responses when caring for such patients. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate nurses' HE knowledge in Najran hospitals in Saudi Arabia.

Methods: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted with nurses at the Najran Hospital in Najran City, Saudi Arabia. The sample size was determined using Epi-Calc 2000, resulting in a final sample of 125 nurses from intensive care units (ICU), cardiac surgical ICU and pediatric ICU, and they were selected by convenience sampling technique. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, and 125 nurses participated in knowledge assessment. The data were coded and entered into SPSS version 21.0 for descriptive and inferential statistics. Information letters and consent forms were obtained from all the participants.

Results: The majority of nurses (88.8%) were female, and 59.2% were married. The age range of participants was 20-30 years (50.4%). Approximately 36.8% had 4-6 years of work experience. The majority of the nurses (87.2%) held a bachelor's degree. More than half (56%) of the nurses demonstrated moderate HE knowledge, whereas over a quarter (28%) exhibited good knowledge. There was a highly statistically significant association between marital status, level of education, nationality, and level of nurses' knowledge regarding HE (P-value = 0.01, 0.02, and 0.02, respectively).

Conclusion: The study concludes that nurses in Najran hospitals have an adequate knowledge levels, ranging from moderate to good. This highlights the importance of tailored educational programs to enhance nurses' understanding of HE symptoms and management. Furthermore, the marital status, education level, and nationality have significant association with nurses' knowledge.

Keywords: Najran hospitals; hepatic encephalopathy; knowledge; nurses.

Grants and funding

The project was funded by the Ministry of Education and the Deanship of Scientific Research at Najran University, Saudi Arabia, for funding the project: Najran Research Funding program. Grant code (NU/NAR/MRC/11/8).