Effectiveness of Planned Teaching Programme on Knowledge and Practice of Endotracheal Suctioning among Staff Nurses in Selected Hospitals of Mangalore

Background: Endotracheal suctioning is an essential and frequently performed procedure for patients requiring intubation and mechanical ventilation. By endotracheal suctioning, secretions from the tracheobronchial tree are cleared, guaranteeing optimal oxygenation and avoiding accumulation of secretions. The management of the endotracheal tube is associated with several complications and risks.

Objectives: To determine the knowledge and practice of staff nurses regarding endotracheal suctioning. To evaluate the effect of planned teaching programme in terms of gain in knowledge and practice scores. To find out the correlation of knowledge scores with practice scores on endotracheal suctioning among staff nurses. To find out the association of knowledge and practice with selected demographic variables.

Method: The study design was pre experimental one group pre-test post-test design. The purposive sampling technique was used to draw 30 staff nurse as samples. Data was collected by administering the structured knowledge questionnaire on endotracheal suctioning to assess the knowledge and observational checklist to assess the practice. After collecting data, the planned teaching programme was administered to the subjects and on the 7th day a post-test was conducted using the same questionnaire and observational checklist.

Results: The post-test analysis showed there was a significant increase in the knowledge score. In the post-test, majority (100%) had good knowledge and none of them had inadequate knowledge on endotracheal suctioning The post-test analysis showed there is a significant increase in the practice scores. In the post-test, majority (100%) had good level of practice of performing endotracheal suctioning. Significant association was found between work experience and the post-test level of knowledge (χ²=7.1, p≤0.05) and post-test practice (χ²=8.45,p≤0.05).

Interpretation and conclusion: The findings of the study proved that the planned teaching programme was an effective measure to improve the knowledge and practice of staff nurses regarding endotracheal suctioning. Education to the staff nurses will help them to prevent or to reduce the complication that can occur due to suctioning.