This quantitative research report will critique research done by Smith and Waugh (2009) on the assessment of registered nurses’ knowledge on treatment and prevention of pressure ulcers. The critique will major on the study’s problem statement, the purpose of the study as in whether the study is significant to nursing, research questions that are the main research question. If the main research question is not stated, the focus will be on alternative research questions. The study hypothesis will be delved into. If the hypothesis is not stated, the critique is supposed to formulate a hypothesis for the study. In case there is more than one hypothesis, all the hypotheses have to be stated (Cullen and Cox, 2005). The critique will illuminate the study’s independent and dependent variables. The focus will also be put on the theoretical framework that was used to guide the study. The critique will assess how the literature review supports the study, design of the study, setting and sample, identification and control of extraneous variables, tools the study made use of, methods used for data collection, procedures of analyzing data, study limitations, and implications of the study.
Pressure ulcers often result from the destruction of tissues that result from prolonged pressure. Other alternative names used to refer to the condition are bedsore or pressure sore. Pressure ulcers are very significant in bedridden patients. However, pressure ulcers can also form when a patient stays in a particular position for a very long period. One of its primary causes is pressure. The condition, therefore, describes the skin lesion as well as the causative factors. The prevalence of the condition keeps varying in different populations hence the inconsistency of the methods that are used to interpret the data (CMS, 2005). Factors that frustrate the accurate calculation of incidence and prevalence rate of pressure ulcers include the fact that studies do confuse incidence with prevalence, variability in populations that are studied, ranging sources of information from patient’s direct observation to review of charts of discharged patients, and use of different definitions by investigators in the staging of pressure ulcers.
Pressure ulcers always persist as long as patients are still residing in a long-term care facility. It has the highest incidences during the first few weeks of patient along-term a long term care facility because clinicians will be directing much of their energy in diagnosing pressure ulcer that was not previously recognized. Reported prevalence implicates patients in acute care hospitals and those in lolongong-termcilities with scam risk of developing pressure ulcers (Maylor and Torrance,1999). Some patients develop pressure ulcers from their homes where they receive the care of health professionals. Costs incurred in the treatment of pressure ulcers keep on varying partly due to inconsistency in data collection and inaccuracy on part of data collectors. HospiHospital-acquiredctions on patients at risk of developing pressure ulcers eat into health resources. Turning of patie is the most expensive act in preventing pressure ulcers. cost solved is not just financial. Indeed there are also intangible costs. There are other causes of pressure ulcers other than poor nursing care. Most pressure ulcers can be prevented where whereas cannot be prevented. Pressure and shear remain some of the major causcausespressure ulcers. Friction can also significantly lead to the development of pressure ulcers. Specialty beds have in the recent past been used to prevent pressure ulcers. However, their use should not substitute observation of strict vigilance and regular assessment of patients.
The research study delved into the assessment of registered nurses’ knowledge on the prevention and treatment of pressure ulcers. The study purposed to assess the knowledge of registered nurses on risks of pressure ulcers, their prevention, how they can be staged, and the description of the wound. The study also intended to perceive barriers r nurses face to ineffective pressure ulcer prevention and treatment. The research question was about whether there were barriers that health care professionals (nurses and clinicians) faced at work that prevented them from providing effective pressure ulcer prevention and treatment. Other questions asked in the study included whether persons who can be taught are supposed to shift their weight after every half an hour while they are sitting in a chair, whether it is necessary to reposition a person who cannot move sitting in a chair after every 2 hours, whether heel protectors help in relieving pressure on the heels, whether vascular boots aid in protecting the heels from pressure, whether pressure ulcer can result due to predisposition of somebody to low humidity, whether people lying on the bed should be at 30-degree position with the bed, whether pressure ulcers can be prevente4d by using ring cushions or donut devices, whether tissue interface pressure below capillary closing pressure can be reduced by a pressure-relieving surface, and whether stage III pressure ulcers is a partial skin loss that involves the epidermis and dermal layers of the skin.
The hypotheses of the study included identification of barriers encountered by nurses and clinicians that prevent them from providing effective treatment and prevention to pressure ulcers, encouraging patients who can be taught to shift their weight in the chair, repositioning those who cannot move, to ascertain if heel protectors relieve pressure on heels, to prove if vascular boots protect heels from pressure, to show that low humidity environment surely exposes one to risks of pressure ulcers, to prove if donut devices prevent pressure ulcers, to show if pressure-relieving surface help in reducing tissue interface pressure.
The study’s independent variables included the participant’s gender that is whether they were male or female nurses. The other demographic data given made part of the dependent variables.
The study did not have a very strong theoretical framework as wound care among registered nurses was not well documented. The glaring absence of knowledge deficit helps educators to channel resources into the reduction and elimination of such deficits. Pressure ulcer prevention is not only founded on sufficient knowledge on the issue. Other than lack of proper documentation, individual and organizational barriers contribute to care inadequacy among pressure ulcer patients.
Literature review touches on chronic wound prevention and treatment, guidelines prediction and prevention of pressure ulcers in adults that acknowledged management and prevention of pressure ulcers, provision of care and prevention by individual nurses, and improvement of the patient outcome by increasing knowledge of wound care (Smith and Waugh, 2009).
The study design was both descriptive and non-experimental. The study involved the use of a convenience sample. Participation in the study was voluntary and guaranteed anonymity. Data collection was done with the help of the Pieper Pressure Ulcer Knowledge Test. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics. It specifically addressed demographic data and barrier questions. SPSS was used in analyzing data. ANOVA was also used in the analysis of data.
The study’s limitations included nurses’ lack of current knowledge on wound management and skincare.
Because of the lack of improvement in nurses’ knowledge on pressure ulcers, educational programs should be instituted to increase their knowledge in this area. Alternatively, the nurses can make use of the internet to improve their knowledge on pressure ulcers treatment and prevention.
Reference List
Cullen, M, & Cox, F. (2005). Developing a wound management orientation program using evidence-based guidelines. Home Health Care Management & Practice, 17(4): 308-315,
CMS examines the usual care of chronic wounds. (2005). Advances in Skin & Wound Care, 18(5): 248-256.
Smith, D., & Waugh, S. (2009). Research Study: An Assessment of Registered Nurses’ Knowledge of Pressure Ulcers Prevention and Treatment. Kansas Nurse, 84(1): 3-5.
Maylor, M., & Torrance, C. (1999). Pressure sore survey part 2: Nurses’ knowledge. Journal of Wound Care, 8(2): 49-52.