Development and Testing of the Psychometric Properties of Thai Nurses’ Attitudes toward Alcohol-dependent Patients Scale

Abstract

Background: The attitudes of nurses can impact quality of patient care. Aim: To develop and test the psychometric properties of Thai nurses' attitudes toward alcohol-dependent patients scale. Method: Instrument development research design was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 was focus group interviews to better understand the meaning and concept of attitudes of nurses toward alcohol-dependent patients, creating components of attitude and developing specific scale items. Phase 2 was the evaluation of psychometric properties of the scale through fieldtesting for construct validity and reliability. Data was analyzed using the Pearson correlation coefficient test, t-test, factor analysis technique with varimax rotation, and Cronbach's alpha coefficient test. Results: 28 items showed good item discrimination power. The item-total correlations showed medium to high levels of correlation with factor loadings ≥0.44, and displayed a total variance of 73.19%. Exploratory factor analysis revealed 5 components: nurses' opinion alcohol-dependent patients in terms of behavior, beliefs, opinion on personalities, feeling about image, and opinion on care. The reliability coefficient alpha of Cronbach was 0.96. Conclusion: Nurses' attitudes toward alcohol-dependent patients scale shows high validity, high reliability, and could be used as a scale of Thai nurses' attitudes toward alcohol-dependent patients. Keywords: alcohol dependent patients,attitudes,nurses,psychometric properties,scale IntroductionAlcohol consumption is a main factor for burden of disease. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 76.3 million people in the world have been affected by alcohol abuse and dependence [1]. Around 5% of Thai people were classified to be alcohol dependent according to a report by the Integrated Movement on Alcohol Problems -Health in 2012(IMAP-Health).A study of burden of disease among Thai population in 2009 found that alcohol dependence and harmful alcohol use was the number one factor among 10 causes of burden of disease [2]. Alcohol dependence is a chronic disease and alcohol relapse can occur anytime; it is often combined with other physical or psychiatric co-morbid diseases leading to complicated treatment and care. The prevalence of alcohol dependence or alcohol related ______________________________ *Correspondence Soontaree SrikosaiRajanagarindra Institute of Child Development, Department of Mental Health. 196 Moo 10, Don Kaew T. Mae Rim A. 50180, Chiang Mai, Thailand E Mail: s.srikosai@gmail.com problems in government psychiatric hospitals in Thailand is the second highest after schizophrenia. In the last 5 years at Suan Prung Psychiatric Hospital in Northern Thailand, a 700-bed tertiary care facility, 45 percent of alcohol-dependent patients have been readmitted within 1 year [3]. According to two studies, "The History and Future of "Aftercare" by White and Godley and "Alcohol relapse repetition, gender, and predictive validity" by Zywiak et al., alcohol relapse is most often found during thefirst1-2 month...