An educational intervention for professional nurses on the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in the operating theatres
- Authors: Alayemi, Joshua
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Surgical wound infections -- Prevention , Surgical nursing Operating room nursing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/47937 , vital:40454
- Description: Infection control and prevention is an issue that is of utmost importance to every health practitioner, including professional nurses, as patients who undergo surgeries could develop sepsis, leading to failure of multiple organs and possibly death. Surgical site infections acquired from operating theatres are often introduced when there is lack of application of and adherence to the necessary control measures, sterile principles and techniques, including the appropriate use of surgical attire. This study aimed to contextualize, implement and evaluate an existing educational intervention regarding the use of surgical attire in operating theatres, in order to establish whether the educational intervention enhanced the practices of professional nurses in operating theatres regarding the use of surgical attire. A quantitative research design, using a quasi-experimental two-group pre-test, post-test intervention approach was employed for the study. The study consisted of three phases. Phase 1 consisted of the administration of the pre-test questionnaire relating to Objective One: “To explore and describe the practices of professional nurses on the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres”. Phase 2 consisted of the contextualization and implementation of the educational intervention, which related to Objective Two: “To contextualize and implement an educational intervention for professional nurses on the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres”. Phase 3 consisted of the administration of the posttest questionnaire, which related to Objective Three: “To evaluate whether an educational intervention regarding the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres enhanced professional nurses’ practices”. The study is underpinned by the Promoting Action on Research Implementation (PARiHS) framework. The research sample consisted of all professional nurses working in the public and private operating theatres in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. Purposive sampling was used to select the hospitals in control (Hospitals 2 and 3) and intervention groups (Hospitals 4 and 5), ensuring an equal number of public and private hospitals in each group. Data was collected through self-administered pre- and post-questionnaires. An existing educational intervention based on the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN’s) guidelines was contextualized through review by three professional nurses with a specialty in operating theatre. The educational intervention was implemented for the intervention group, while the control group only received the summary of the AORN guidelines. Reliability and validity were ensured through the conduct of a pilot study, and expert review by three professional nurses with a specialty in operating theatre in order to check the validity and reliability of the data collection instrument and educational intervention. The data collection instrument was also reviewed by a statistician. Ethical clearance and permission was obtained from the relevant institutions. The following ethical principles were adhered to during the study: justice, respect and beneficence. The overall score of pre-test and post-test questionnaires for the control group revealed means of 3.96 and 4.01, with a standard deviation of 0.40 and 0.38, with a difference of -0.06 and a degree of freedom of 59. The overall score of the pre-test and post-test of the intervention group revealed means of 3.68 and 4.22, a standard deviation of 0.47 and 0.36, with a difference of -0.53, degree of freedom of 61 and a large significance difference of Cohen’s d= 1.26. This means that the educational intervention had a positive effect in terms of improving the professional nurses’ practices on the use of surgical attire to prevent surgical site infections in operating theatres. Recommendations for education, practice as well as future research were provided.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Alayemi, Joshua
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Surgical wound infections -- Prevention , Surgical nursing Operating room nursing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/47937 , vital:40454
- Description: Infection control and prevention is an issue that is of utmost importance to every health practitioner, including professional nurses, as patients who undergo surgeries could develop sepsis, leading to failure of multiple organs and possibly death. Surgical site infections acquired from operating theatres are often introduced when there is lack of application of and adherence to the necessary control measures, sterile principles and techniques, including the appropriate use of surgical attire. This study aimed to contextualize, implement and evaluate an existing educational intervention regarding the use of surgical attire in operating theatres, in order to establish whether the educational intervention enhanced the practices of professional nurses in operating theatres regarding the use of surgical attire. A quantitative research design, using a quasi-experimental two-group pre-test, post-test intervention approach was employed for the study. The study consisted of three phases. Phase 1 consisted of the administration of the pre-test questionnaire relating to Objective One: “To explore and describe the practices of professional nurses on the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres”. Phase 2 consisted of the contextualization and implementation of the educational intervention, which related to Objective Two: “To contextualize and implement an educational intervention for professional nurses on the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres”. Phase 3 consisted of the administration of the posttest questionnaire, which related to Objective Three: “To evaluate whether an educational intervention regarding the use of surgical attire in the prevention of surgical site infections in operating theatres enhanced professional nurses’ practices”. The study is underpinned by the Promoting Action on Research Implementation (PARiHS) framework. The research sample consisted of all professional nurses working in the public and private operating theatres in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. Purposive sampling was used to select the hospitals in control (Hospitals 2 and 3) and intervention groups (Hospitals 4 and 5), ensuring an equal number of public and private hospitals in each group. Data was collected through self-administered pre- and post-questionnaires. An existing educational intervention based on the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN’s) guidelines was contextualized through review by three professional nurses with a specialty in operating theatre. The educational intervention was implemented for the intervention group, while the control group only received the summary of the AORN guidelines. Reliability and validity were ensured through the conduct of a pilot study, and expert review by three professional nurses with a specialty in operating theatre in order to check the validity and reliability of the data collection instrument and educational intervention. The data collection instrument was also reviewed by a statistician. Ethical clearance and permission was obtained from the relevant institutions. The following ethical principles were adhered to during the study: justice, respect and beneficence. The overall score of pre-test and post-test questionnaires for the control group revealed means of 3.96 and 4.01, with a standard deviation of 0.40 and 0.38, with a difference of -0.06 and a degree of freedom of 59. The overall score of the pre-test and post-test of the intervention group revealed means of 3.68 and 4.22, a standard deviation of 0.47 and 0.36, with a difference of -0.53, degree of freedom of 61 and a large significance difference of Cohen’s d= 1.26. This means that the educational intervention had a positive effect in terms of improving the professional nurses’ practices on the use of surgical attire to prevent surgical site infections in operating theatres. Recommendations for education, practice as well as future research were provided.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Continuous professional development for medical sales representatives: a needs assessment
- Authors: Heleta, Jade Lana
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Career development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46366 , vital:39576
- Description: Employees in any industry need to continuously update their skills in order to be knowledgeable and competitive. Conducting a needs assessment plays an instrumental role in ensuring that continuous professional development (CPD) training is relevant to the target audience. In many organisations, however, CPD training programmes are often planned and delivered without a comprehensive needs assessment first being undertaken. This was a quantitative study that used a descriptive survey design and an online survey tool for data collection and analysis. Using an all-inclusive sample, the purpose of this study was to explore and describe CPD needs of medical sales representatives at an international medical devices company that operates in South Africa. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. Research findings are depicted in frequencies, percentages, tables and figures. The findings of the study reveal specific training needs of the respondents and the shortcomings of the existing CPD offerings. The findings show that the CPD training offered by the company under study is mostly product specific and about sales. The respondents have highlighted that they would like to see more practical training to be incorporated into the CPD training programmes. It was also noted that the respondents would like to provide more input into the training programmes that are being offered by the company under study. The study has also identified areas where the company can improve in order to make these CPD training opportunities a more satisfying, educational and developmental experience for the employees. While the study focuses on one company, findings are relevant for other similar companies, as well as companies in other industries, since CPD at the workplace is a necessity in any competitive business environment or industry in order to increase productivity, sales, staff retention and customer satisfaction.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Heleta, Jade Lana
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Career development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46366 , vital:39576
- Description: Employees in any industry need to continuously update their skills in order to be knowledgeable and competitive. Conducting a needs assessment plays an instrumental role in ensuring that continuous professional development (CPD) training is relevant to the target audience. In many organisations, however, CPD training programmes are often planned and delivered without a comprehensive needs assessment first being undertaken. This was a quantitative study that used a descriptive survey design and an online survey tool for data collection and analysis. Using an all-inclusive sample, the purpose of this study was to explore and describe CPD needs of medical sales representatives at an international medical devices company that operates in South Africa. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. Research findings are depicted in frequencies, percentages, tables and figures. The findings of the study reveal specific training needs of the respondents and the shortcomings of the existing CPD offerings. The findings show that the CPD training offered by the company under study is mostly product specific and about sales. The respondents have highlighted that they would like to see more practical training to be incorporated into the CPD training programmes. It was also noted that the respondents would like to provide more input into the training programmes that are being offered by the company under study. The study has also identified areas where the company can improve in order to make these CPD training opportunities a more satisfying, educational and developmental experience for the employees. While the study focuses on one company, findings are relevant for other similar companies, as well as companies in other industries, since CPD at the workplace is a necessity in any competitive business environment or industry in order to increase productivity, sales, staff retention and customer satisfaction.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Coping and support needs of midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the Nelson Mandela Bay health district
- Authors: Kave, Yekiswa Victoria
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Perinatal death
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46365 , vital:39573
- Description: Midwives are part of the multidisciplinary team in maternal units and have the bulk of the obstetrical and midwifery responsibilities. The responsibilities being referred to include provision of perinatal care and support to grieving women who have lost their babies at birth and to their families. The care referred to in this study is focused mainly on the grieving women and not on the midwife. By virtue of midwives being present in the event of perinatal loss or caring for a woman who experienced perinatal loss, midwives are compelled to be involved and are bound to experience deep emotions. Furthermore, there is little formal support available for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in Nelson Mandela Bay Health District (NMBHD) and South Africa at large. The purpose of this study was to obtain a deeper understanding of coping and support needs of midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD. The objectives developed for this study were: explore and describe the facilitating conditions that will enable midwives to care for women with perinatal loss in the in NMBHD; explore and describe the inhibitory conditions that prevent midwives from caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD; identify and describe support needs for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD and develop coping and support recommendations for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD. After permission had been granted by the Nelson Mandela university and approval from other relevant authorities had been received data collection was conducted between November 2018 and January 2019, using qualitative research design and interviews. The research population included all midwives working in Midwife Obstetric units (MOUs) and referral hospitals in NMBHD. Purposive sampling was used, and the data collection method was semi-structured and audio-taped in one-on-one interviews with midwives. Sample size was determined by data saturation. The number of participants was thirteen and two of these participants formed part of the pilot study. The collected data was analysed using the seven steps of Framework Analysis from which three themes emerged namely: Midwives rely on their own coping mechanisms vi to deal with perinatal loss; Midwives expressed how management influenced the way they coped with perinatal loss events; Midwives expressed the need for psychological and emotional support. Trustworthiness was maintained by observing Lincoln and Guba’s principles of credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. The researcher ensured that the Belmont Report ethical principles were maintained throughout the study. Three main coping and support recommendations for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD were developed using an adapted version of the AGREE II Tool. The recommendations were: Recommendation 1: Facilitate various forms of peer assistance to prepare and support midwives caring for women with perinatal loss; Recommendation 2: Provide formal support systems in the labour unit to assist midwives to care for women with perinatal loss; and Recommendation 3: Strengthen existing EAPs and provide unit-based psychological and emotional support in order to accommodate the needs of midwives caring for women with perinatal loss.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Kave, Yekiswa Victoria
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Perinatal death
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46365 , vital:39573
- Description: Midwives are part of the multidisciplinary team in maternal units and have the bulk of the obstetrical and midwifery responsibilities. The responsibilities being referred to include provision of perinatal care and support to grieving women who have lost their babies at birth and to their families. The care referred to in this study is focused mainly on the grieving women and not on the midwife. By virtue of midwives being present in the event of perinatal loss or caring for a woman who experienced perinatal loss, midwives are compelled to be involved and are bound to experience deep emotions. Furthermore, there is little formal support available for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in Nelson Mandela Bay Health District (NMBHD) and South Africa at large. The purpose of this study was to obtain a deeper understanding of coping and support needs of midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD. The objectives developed for this study were: explore and describe the facilitating conditions that will enable midwives to care for women with perinatal loss in the in NMBHD; explore and describe the inhibitory conditions that prevent midwives from caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD; identify and describe support needs for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD and develop coping and support recommendations for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD. After permission had been granted by the Nelson Mandela university and approval from other relevant authorities had been received data collection was conducted between November 2018 and January 2019, using qualitative research design and interviews. The research population included all midwives working in Midwife Obstetric units (MOUs) and referral hospitals in NMBHD. Purposive sampling was used, and the data collection method was semi-structured and audio-taped in one-on-one interviews with midwives. Sample size was determined by data saturation. The number of participants was thirteen and two of these participants formed part of the pilot study. The collected data was analysed using the seven steps of Framework Analysis from which three themes emerged namely: Midwives rely on their own coping mechanisms vi to deal with perinatal loss; Midwives expressed how management influenced the way they coped with perinatal loss events; Midwives expressed the need for psychological and emotional support. Trustworthiness was maintained by observing Lincoln and Guba’s principles of credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. The researcher ensured that the Belmont Report ethical principles were maintained throughout the study. Three main coping and support recommendations for midwives caring for women with perinatal loss in the NMBHD were developed using an adapted version of the AGREE II Tool. The recommendations were: Recommendation 1: Facilitate various forms of peer assistance to prepare and support midwives caring for women with perinatal loss; Recommendation 2: Provide formal support systems in the labour unit to assist midwives to care for women with perinatal loss; and Recommendation 3: Strengthen existing EAPs and provide unit-based psychological and emotional support in order to accommodate the needs of midwives caring for women with perinatal loss.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Experiences of community service nurses regarding supervision and support from professional nurses in primary health care clinics in Nelson Mandela Bay
- Authors: Zambodla, Ayanda
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Primary health care -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46456 , vital:39604
- Description: Community servicenursesinSouthAfricaarenewly qualified nurses who have to undertake a one-year community service rotation in public healthcare facility. Recently qualified, they are not yet competent to work alone and require supervision Theobjectiveofthisstudywastoexploreanddescribetheexperiencesofcommunity service nurses with regards to the supervision and support they received from professional nurses at primary healthcare clinics inNelsonMandelaBay.The researcher utilised a qualitative research approach, with an explorative, descriptive and contextual research design inorder to achieve the objectives of this study. The research population comprised community service nurses who had completed their one-year community serviceduringthe2016-2017cycleinaprimary healthcarefacilityinNelsonMandelaBay.Purposivesamplingwasusedtoselectthe research sample. Data collection was done by conducting 10semi-structured interviews. Descriptive field notes supplemented the data. Tesch’smethod of qualitative data analysis was employed to analyse the data. Ethical considerations were applied throughout the study. Trustworthiness of the study was maintained by applyingGuba’s criteria of credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. Two main themes emerged from the study. Theme1 focused on the participant's experiences regarding the diverse needs related to the community service placement at primary healthcare clinics. Theme2 related to the participants expressed experiences with regard to social interaction during community service at primary healthcare clinics. The findings of the study enabled recommendations to be made for nursing practice, education and research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Zambodla, Ayanda
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Primary health care -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46456 , vital:39604
- Description: Community servicenursesinSouthAfricaarenewly qualified nurses who have to undertake a one-year community service rotation in public healthcare facility. Recently qualified, they are not yet competent to work alone and require supervision Theobjectiveofthisstudywastoexploreanddescribetheexperiencesofcommunity service nurses with regards to the supervision and support they received from professional nurses at primary healthcare clinics inNelsonMandelaBay.The researcher utilised a qualitative research approach, with an explorative, descriptive and contextual research design inorder to achieve the objectives of this study. The research population comprised community service nurses who had completed their one-year community serviceduringthe2016-2017cycleinaprimary healthcarefacilityinNelsonMandelaBay.Purposivesamplingwasusedtoselectthe research sample. Data collection was done by conducting 10semi-structured interviews. Descriptive field notes supplemented the data. Tesch’smethod of qualitative data analysis was employed to analyse the data. Ethical considerations were applied throughout the study. Trustworthiness of the study was maintained by applyingGuba’s criteria of credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. Two main themes emerged from the study. Theme1 focused on the participant's experiences regarding the diverse needs related to the community service placement at primary healthcare clinics. Theme2 related to the participants expressed experiences with regard to social interaction during community service at primary healthcare clinics. The findings of the study enabled recommendations to be made for nursing practice, education and research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Perceptions of employees at an automotive-manufacturing company regarding the use of hearing -protection devices
- Authors: Ngcipe, Thanduxolo Kemsley
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Hearing aids
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46360 , vital:39592
- Description: Occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) develops as a result of continuous excessive noise-exposure levels above 85 dB(A) occupational exposure limit (OEL), over an average period of eight hours per day. Many employees incur hearing loss during a period of five to ten years of employment. Noise-induced hearing loss can be prevented and even be eliminated if the exposed employees adhere to the proper and consistent use of hearing protection devices (HPDs). However, non-compliance makes it impossible to eliminate NIHL. The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the perceptions of employees working in an automotive manufacturing company with regard to the use of HPDs and to make recommendations to the company’s management in relation to the findings of the study. A qualitative, explorative, descriptive and contextual design was used to conduct this study. The research sample comprised all employees working in noise-zone areas above 85 dB(A). Purposive sampling was used to select the research sample. The data were collected by using in-depth interviews. The data analysis was conducted by using Tesch’s method of data analysis. A pilot study was conducted before the main study. Ethical considerations were adhered to throughout the study. The main findings revealed that the participants at the automotive manufacturing company were knowledgeable about the use of different types of HPDs that are used in their work environment even though some participants do not use it all the time. Most employees were aware of the hazardous noise levels emitted by hydraulic presses in their areas, however, some employees become accustomed to the level of noise and ignore using HPDs. Some employees reported use of their preferred types of HPDs. However, issues like comfort design and work-related communications were factors influencing the use of HPDs. In conclusion, it is evident that the people were knowledgeable about the types of hearing protection devices that are used in their areas and the reasons for them. However, the study findings revealed that the employees are not directly involved in selecting the type of HPDs with which they are comfortable. This could have a negative effect on the employees’ morale and their compliance with the use of HPDs. Based on the research findings, the recommendations were made, according to training and future research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Ngcipe, Thanduxolo Kemsley
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Hearing aids
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCur
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/46360 , vital:39592
- Description: Occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) develops as a result of continuous excessive noise-exposure levels above 85 dB(A) occupational exposure limit (OEL), over an average period of eight hours per day. Many employees incur hearing loss during a period of five to ten years of employment. Noise-induced hearing loss can be prevented and even be eliminated if the exposed employees adhere to the proper and consistent use of hearing protection devices (HPDs). However, non-compliance makes it impossible to eliminate NIHL. The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the perceptions of employees working in an automotive manufacturing company with regard to the use of HPDs and to make recommendations to the company’s management in relation to the findings of the study. A qualitative, explorative, descriptive and contextual design was used to conduct this study. The research sample comprised all employees working in noise-zone areas above 85 dB(A). Purposive sampling was used to select the research sample. The data were collected by using in-depth interviews. The data analysis was conducted by using Tesch’s method of data analysis. A pilot study was conducted before the main study. Ethical considerations were adhered to throughout the study. The main findings revealed that the participants at the automotive manufacturing company were knowledgeable about the use of different types of HPDs that are used in their work environment even though some participants do not use it all the time. Most employees were aware of the hazardous noise levels emitted by hydraulic presses in their areas, however, some employees become accustomed to the level of noise and ignore using HPDs. Some employees reported use of their preferred types of HPDs. However, issues like comfort design and work-related communications were factors influencing the use of HPDs. In conclusion, it is evident that the people were knowledgeable about the types of hearing protection devices that are used in their areas and the reasons for them. However, the study findings revealed that the employees are not directly involved in selecting the type of HPDs with which they are comfortable. This could have a negative effect on the employees’ morale and their compliance with the use of HPDs. Based on the research findings, the recommendations were made, according to training and future research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- «
- ‹
- 1
- ›
- »