The relationship between nurses' risk assessment and management, fear perception, and mental wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia.

During this pandemic, it is crucial to implement early interventions to help nurses manage their mental wellbeing by providing them with information regarding coping skills, preventive risk assessment approaches (such as hospital preparedness and rapid risk assessment), and the ability to respond. This study evaluated the effect of fear and risk assessment management on nurses' mental wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. A total of 507 nurses who worked in tertiary public hospitals were asked to take a descriptive design survey. Three survey scales were used to assess the survey: the Risk Assessment Scale, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale. Independent t-tests and a one-way ANOVA were used to examine the association between fear of COVID-19 and nurses' demographic characteristics on their mental wellbeing. A multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the predictors associated with mental wellbeing. Findings revealed that almost half of the participants showed moderate positive mental wellbeing, 49.7%, while only 14% had low levels of fear on the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well being Scale. Most of the respondents had low levels of fear on the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, 45%, while only 15% had high levels of fear on the scale. Then, some demographic variables, such as "age," "nationality," "total years of experience in the current hospital," and "region you work at" had statistically significant differences with p < 0.5. Meanwhile, risk assessment is also associated with mental wellbeing scores. All items on the Fear of COVID-19 Scale showed no significant difference with a P > 0.05. In conclusion, most nurses providing direct patient care to a patient with COVID-19 emphasized the importance of wearing PPE and performing hand hygiene before and after any clean or aseptic procedure. Meanwhile, although almost all nurses were vaccinated, they were still afraid of a COVID-19 infection. Additionally, the results reported that the older the nurses are, the better their mental wellbeing scores. Non-Saudi nurses had higher perceived mental wellbeing scores than Saudi nurses, and different working environments corresponded to different mental wellbeing scores. Finally, nurses' risk assessment was associated with mental wellbeing scores.

Nurses' Perception of Safety Culture in Medical-Surgical Units in Hospitals in Saudi Arabia.

Introduction: Patient safety captures the essence of the primary principle of medical ethics, primum non nocere, first do no harm; this is an important concern in the health care system. Nurses are indispensable members of this system and are the largest group of health care providers involved in the direct delivery of patient care. As an integral part of the health care system, it is important to know nurses' opinions on patient safety culture. Objectives: First, to evaluate and measure the existing safety culture and safety of patients in medical-surgical wards (MSW) in hospitals located in the Qassim region, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Second, to survey the opinion of registered nurses and supervisors/managers about safety culture and issues concerned with safety in hospitals in the region. Materials and Methods: A validated cross-sectional survey, namely the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC), was used. This survey queried 300 nurses in different MSWs in four hospitals in the Qassim Region. Results: Overall, a positive culture of safety exists in MSWs, with 69% of RNs rating their wards as having great/excellent safety culture. Notably, some participants felt it was problematic that blame was assigned to nurses for reported errors. While 55.9% of participants noted that all errors or narrowly avoided errors had been reported, less than half actually reported errors in the last year. Conclusion: The perceived safety culture was largely positive; however, the results also indicated that a culture of safety comes with some risk and blame.

Scope of Nursing Practice as Perceived by Nurses Working in Saudi Arabia.

The absence of scope of practice guidelines may lead to role ambiguity and legal consequences in nursing practice. This study measures the scope of practice of nurses in Saudi Arabia. The study utilized a descriptive cross-sectional design using an electronic version of the Arabic Actual Scope of Nursing Practice (A-ASCOP) questionnaire among 928 nurses. Descriptive analysis was followed by a t-test and an analysis of variance (ANOVA). Significance was assured through the Bonferroni test; the effect size was measured through partial η2 when appropriate. The A-ASCOP mean score of each dimension ranged from 4.29 to 4.72 (overall mean = 4.59). Significant overall ASCOP score variations were evident, with higher ASCOP among expatriate nurses, females, Hospital Operation Program (HOP) nurses, and nurses with postgraduate qualifications. Partial η2 showed a small effect of <0.016. Low-complexity nursing tasks showed insignificant differences no matter the nurse's position, but were less practiced by Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and advanced-degree nurses than by those with a diploma education. High complexity of ASCOP was practiced significantly more often by postgraduate-prepared nurses than by diploma-educated nurses. The study showed that there is a range of variation in nursing practice, but that the lack of internal regulations (nursing scope of practice) has no effect on nursing duties. In a country such as Saudi Arabia, where massive national improvement initiatives are frequent, clearly defining the scope of practice for nurses is essential and needs to be done through government mandates. Further studies are essential to define what the scope of practice should include.

Nurses' Knowledge and Attitudes Regarding Pain Assessment and Management in Saudi Arabia.

Inadequate pain management affects the patient outcome. Pain assessment and management are fundamental in nursing care, and nurses must be equipped with adequate knowledge and a positive attitude toward pain assessment and management. This study aims to evaluate nurses' knowledge and attitudes regarding pain assessment and management at King Fahad Hospital, Al-Madinah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey, using a self-administered questionnaire, was conducted from January to February 2020 with 660 registered nurses working in the Emergency Department, critical care units, inpatient and outpatient departments at King Fahad Hospital in Al-Medinah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The data were analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics. Of the 660 nurses, 291 responded, resulting in a response rate of 44.09%. The participants' scores ranged from 17.7% to 100%, with a mean score 45.29%. The majority of the participants (70.1%) had a poor level of knowledge and attitudes (score < 50%). Nurses working in the outpatient department scored significantly higher than the group working in the Emergency Department and inpatient wards. Deficient knowledge and negative attitudes were found and nurses continue to underassess and undertreat pain. Nursing school curricula and in-service continuous education must equip nurses with the required knowledge and attitudes to enable them to manage pain effectively.

Caring for Women With Postpartum Depression in Saudi Arabia: Nurses' and Midwives' Opinions About Their Roles.

The current cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate nurses' and midwives' opinions about their roles in caring for women with postpartum depression (PPD) in Saudi Arabia. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 181 nurses and 141 midwives. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Participants lacked experience assessing and managing PPD and providing health education and counseling to mothers about PPD. Moreover, participants underestimated the importance of their roles in preventing PPD risk factors, and detecting, assessing, and managing PPD. Findings show significant differences between nurses' and midwives' opinions, with more frequency of agreement among nurses than midwives regarding their roles in caring for women with PPD. Continuing health education programs for nurses and midwives are recommended to improve knowledge, skills, and awareness of their roles in assessing and managing PPD. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 58(7), 42-51.].

Jordanian ostomates' health problems and self-care ability to manage their intestinal ostomy: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Ostomates have several physical, psychological and social health problems. These problems negatively impact the ostomates' quality of life. AIMS: This study aims to identify Jordanian ostomates' health problems and their self-care ability to manage their ostomies. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study. A convenience sampling method was used to recruit 168 Jordanian patients with intestinal ostomies. A self-report questionnaire was used to collect the data. RESULTS: On average, the participants' physiological ostomy-related problem scores were 8.76 ± 2.37 (out of 13 problems) and the total score of self-care ability to manage their ostomies was 16.56 ± 2.62 (out of 24). About 22% of the participants had 'moderately severe' to 'severe' depression (nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire score ≥15) and 33.9% had 'moderate' to 'severe' anxiety (seven-item General Anxiety Disorder questionnaire score ≥10). About half of the participants had exposure to teaching and/or training about ostomy care. About 85% of participants were willing to attend health education and training programmes about ostomy care. There was a significant correlation between high ostomates' self-care ability to manage their ostomies and a low number of physiological health problems (r = -0.67, p = 0.04), a low depression (Patient Health Questionnaire 9) score (r = -0.54, p = 0.039) and a low anxiety (seven-item General Anxiety Disorder questionnaire) score (r = -0.71, p < 0.027). CONCLUSIONS: Health teaching and training about intestinal ostomy management, psychosocial support, follow-up assessment and treatment for ostomy-related problems are recommended for all ostomates.