Retinal detachment describes an emergency situation in which a thin layer of tissue (the retina) at the back of the eye pulls away from its normal position. Retinal detachment separates the retinal cells from the layer of blood vessels that provides oxygen and nourishment. The longer retinal detachment left untreated, the greater the risk of permanent vision loss in the affected eye. Aim: The study aimed to evaluate the effect of an educational program for patients after retinal detachment surgery on their performance and postoperative pain management. Methods: The following hypotheses were formulated to achieve the study aim. H1: Performance of the study group will be improved post program implementation than the control group. H2: The study group will be able to manage pain post program implementation than the control group. H3: There will be significant correlation between patients’ performance and pain management post program implementation for the study group. A quasi-experimental research design was utilized to conduct the current study in the ophthalmology department at Benha University Hospital. A purposive sample of (100) adult patients post retinal detachment surgery were included in this study. Three tools were used, the patients’ knowledge assessment questionnaire, the patients’ practice observational checklist regarding eye care and visual pain analogue scale to assess pain severity. Results: This study shows that most patients had an unsatisfactory level of total knowledge and inadequate total practice regarding the postoperative pain management after retinal detachment surgery pre-program implementation (68% and 76%). This result improved significantly regarding all knowledge and practice elements post-program implementation, where the majority of the patients had a satisfactory level of their total knowledge and adequate total practice (78% and 75%). Conclusion: The majority of the studied patients had an unsatisfactory performance level (knowledge and practice) concerning postoperative pain management after retinal detachment surgery pre-program implementation. In contrast, most of the studied patients had statistically significant improvement in their performance post program implementation. Also, there was a significant positive correlation between patients’ performance and pain management post program implementation that supports the research hypotheses. The study recommended continuous in-service training programs and repeating the study on a high probability sample to achieve generalization of the findings. |
