An assessment of nurses\u27 knowledge and attitudes toward patients with sickle cell disease

This descriptive comparative, correlational study examined nurses\u27 knowledge and attitudes towards patients with sickle cell disease (SCD). The literature suggests that SCD patients are inadequately managed by nurses, resulting in unnecessary suffering, delayed treatment, and prolonged hospitalization. The study was conducted on a convenience sample of 109 registered nurses (RNs) working in southeast Florida. The data, collected via self-administered questionnaires using the Nurses Knowledge Base Inventory (Lorenzi, 1993) and the Sickle Cell Disease Attitude Questionnaire, were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics. Knowledge was not found to be correlated with attitude. A perplexing finding was the inverse relationship between education level and attitude (r= .23, p= .015). Ethnicity was not a differentiating factor in nurses SCD attitude scores, however, there was a strong trend showing that Blacks were the least positive in SCD attitude among the four ethnic groups studied. Formal education alone may not be sufficient in gaining better knowledge and understanding about SCD. Appropriate interventions might be achieved when nurses are knowledgeable about SCD and possess a positive attitudes toward patients with SCD