Assessing knowledge, perceptions and attitudes to pain management among medical and nursing students: a review of the literature

Abstract

Introduction: Chronic pain results in significant personal, societal and economic burden. Doctors and nurses have a pivotal role in patient pain management. In order to determine the effectiveness of current pain education on knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of medical and nursing students, there needs to be a valid measure to assess and quantify these domains. We reviewed the literature to identify approaches for assessing knowledge, perceptions and attitudes to pain management among nursing and medical students. Methods: Databases of peer-reviewed literature including CINAHL, EMBASE, ERIC, PsycInfo, Medline and PubMed were searched for articles published between 1993 and December 2014 using the following search terms: student, graduate, intern, junior, pain, pain management, analgesia, analgesic, pharmacology, pharmacological, knowledge, competence, attitude, preparedness, practice, nursing, medical, doctor, nurse. Results: The search revealed over 3500 articles, and on application of the inclusion criteria, 26 articles were included in the review. A total of 14 instruments were used in these studies with the Knowledge and Attitudes Survey Regarding Pain (KASRP) as the main instrument in 9 out of the 26 articles. The various instruments used different question formats such as multiple-choice questions (MCQs), true/false statements and Likert scales that went from 3 points to 7 points. Clinical skills examinations were also used in four studies to assess pain management. Conclusion: There is no gold standard instrument currently used to assess knowledge, perceptions and attitudes to pain management. The results of this review showed, despite the diversity of standardised instruments that have been used to assess knowledge, perceptions and attitude to pain management, the literature has consistently reported that knowledge about pain management among nursing and medical students was generally poor among both groups.

Undergraduate nursing students' knowledge and attitude regarding pain management of children in Upper Egypt

“…Relieving children's pain has been perceived as a vital public health issue that needs immediate global attention since failing to manage pain can lead to economic and human burden on patients, their families, and society. [21,22] This study aimed to assess undergraduate nursing students' knowledge and attitude as regard pain management in children. The results revealed that more than half of nursing students' knowledge and attitudes about pain management was unsatisfactory as shown in Figure 1 and more than threequarters of undergraduate nursing students, their score response to PNKAS questions were less than 50% as shown in Figure 2.…”

Knowledge and attitudes of Jordanian nursing students toward children’s pain assessment and management: A cross-sectional study

“…[2] In the United Kingdom 8% of the young population suffers from severe pain, [3] and in Australia 67% of the population aged 15 years or more complains of bodily pain. [4] The cost of responding to chronic pain was $34.3 billion in Australia in 2007, [5] and is a sum of between $560 and $635 billion annually in the United States.…”

“…[4] The cost of responding to chronic pain was $34.3 billion in Australia in 2007, [5] and is a sum of between $560 and $635 billion annually in the United States. [2] Experiences of acute or/and chronic pain have detrimental physiological and psychological effects on one's life. [6][7][8] For example, children who experience chronic pain may complain of frequent school absenteeism and withdraw from social life.…”

Practices and perceptions regarding intravenous opioid infusion and cancer pain management

“…[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] Much of the survey content was based on pain management standards of organizations such as the American Pain Society, the World Health Organization, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] Much of the survey content was based on pain management standards of organizations such as the American Pain Society, the World Health Organization, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.…”

“…The web-based survey was developed by the study investigators after a careful review of the literature. [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] Much of the survey content was based on pain management standards of organizations such as the American Pain Society, the World Health Organization, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. It was further reviewed by other clinicians who were considered content experts.…”