Assessment of knowledge and attitude towards cancer pain management and associated factors among nurses at oncology centers in Ethiopia, a nationwide survey study, 2019

Abstract

Abstract Background: Pain is a common and devastating symptom of cancer which affects patient’s life more than the cancer with which they are diagnosed. It has a profound impact in all aspect of quality of life and it is the dominant cause of total suffering for cancer patients. The most significant barrier to the optimal control of pain in cancer patients is deficit in knowledge and attitude of nurses. Objective: To assess knowledge and attitude level of nurses and associated factors towards cancer pain management at oncology centers in Ethiopia, 2019 Method: An institutional based cross sectional study was conducted from February to April, 2019. A structured questionnaire with background characteristics of nurses was used to collect data. A total of 138 nurses from all oncology centers were included in the study. Both bi-variable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with knowledge and attitude level of nurses. Variables with a p-value less than <0.2 in the bivariable analysis was fitted into the multivariable logistic regression analysis. Both Crude odds ratio and adjusted odds ratio with the corresponding 95% Confidence Interval were calculated to show the strength of association. In multivariable analysis, variables with a p-value of <0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: In this study, only 7.2% (95% CI: 2.9, 11.6) of oncology nurses had good knowledge and attitude about cancer pain management. Nurses who had masters degree (AOR: 4.70, 95% CI: 1.12, 19.73 and p-value: 0.034) were positively associated with good knowledge and attitude about cancer pain management. Conclusion and recommendation: In this nationwide study, the knowledge and attitude level of majority of oncology nurses towards cancer pain management was poor. Nurses who had MSc degree were significantly associated with good knowledge and attitude towards cancer pain management. Our result supports the universal concern of inadequate knowledge and attitudes of nurses regarding cancer pain management. Thus, regular and comprehensive cancer pain management training and revision of the contents of pain in the academic curriculum of nursing education are necessary to enhance nurses’ knowledge of pain and possibly to improve practice. Key word: cancer pain, knowledge, attitude, oncology nurses