Background: Astute nursing care is a key factor in the prompt recognition of the early warning signs of necrotizing enterocolitis. Aim of the study was to assess nurses' knowledge and performance regarding care of neonate with necrotizing enterocolitis at neonatal intensive care units. Design: A descriptive study design was utilized. Settings: the study was conducted at neonatal intensive care units of Benha Specialized Pediatric Hospital. Sample: A convenient sample of 60 nurses and 50 high risk neonates had necrotizing enterocolitis. Tools of data collection; Two tools were used to collect data: Tool (1) was a structured interviewing questionnaire to collect sociodemographic data of nurses and knowledge about necrotizing enterocolitis, tool (2) was an observational checklist developed by the researcher to assess nurses' performance regarding care of neonate with necrotizing enterocolitis. Results: The present study revealed that; more than two thirds of the studied nurses had an average level of knowledge, two thirds of them performed unsatisfactory practice regarding care of neonates with necrotizing enterocolitis and there was a positive relation between studied nurses' total knowledge and their performance scores with their personal characteristics. Conclusion: The present study revealed that more than two thirds of studied nurses had average total level of knowledge and two thirds of them had unsatisfactory total performance level and there was a positive correlation between nurses' total knowledge and total performance scores. Recommendations: Developing training programs regarding care of neonates with necrotizing enterocolitis for the nurses working at neonatal intensive care units is important to improve their knowledge and performance. |
