Authors (including presenting author) :
YAU TY(1), YEUNG CM(1), CHAN KW(1), LEUNG SY(1), LEUNG PS(1), TSUI PCB(1), LUN KS(1)
Affiliation :
(1) Department of Paediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, Hong Kong Children’s Hospital
Introduction :
With increasing number of heart failure paediatric patients having Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) to bridge to heart transplant, enhancing knowledge on the principle, troubleshooting and nursing care of LVAD among paediatric cardiac nurses are of increasing importance to ensure quality care and promote patient’s outcome.
Objectives :
1. To enhance nurses' knowledge on nursing care of LVAD through a comprehensive education program.
2. To improve quality of care and outcomes for LVAD patients by early recognition of problems and timely interventions by nurses.
3. To equip nurses with necessary skills to act as the advocate of patients with LVAD.
Methodology :
The target participants for the education program on LVAD in initial phase (April to July 2021) were junior registered nurses whose working experience < 3 years in HKCH Paediatric Cardiology Ward. The education program included 1) A self-learning video clip on the mechanism of LVAD and practical skills of changing controller and batteries; 2) A quick reference guide for alarm tackling; and 3) A 30-minute tailor-made interactive education talk on nursing care of LVAD.
A “Pre-test” vs “Post-test” design was employed to evaluate the effectiveness of the education program on enhancing nursing knowledge of LVAD. Participants were invited to fill in a satisfaction survey at the end of program to provide feedback.
Result & Outcome :
9 junior nurses were recruited in the education program. Compare to the pre-test, the mean score of post-test was greatly improved from 8.1 to 16.4 out of 17 (p<0.001). The standard deviation of post-test score among all participants decreased from 2.73 to 0.5. The average correct rate of each question increased from 48% to 97%. 100% correct rate was achieved in questions on critical points of caring LVAD. It indicated that all participants possessed a higher level of knowledge after the comprehensive education program without great discrepancy between individuals. From the satisfaction survey, all participants satisfied with the education program and agreed it enhanced their confidence in taking care of patients with LVAD.
This comprehensive education program significantly enhanced junior nurses’ knowledge toward LVAD and it would become a routine in-house training for all paediatric cardiac nurses to ensure quality of care & promote patient’s outcome.
