Knowledge and Practices of Nurses Regarding the Management of Elderly Patient with Dysphagia at Tertiary Care Hospital Lahore

Introduction: Dysphagia is the subjective sensation of difficulty swallowing and there are many potential etiologies. It also negatively impacts quality of life and decreases work productivity, and it is the 10th leading cause of ambulatory care visits in the United States among gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, with more than 600,000 visits annually. Method: Quantitative cross-sectional study design was used to determine the knowledge and practices of nurses regarding the management of elderly patient with dysphagia at tertiary care hospital. 111 nurses working at gastro, medical and surgical wards were selected as sample. Data was collected through the standardized well adopted 14 item questionnaires. Results: Results revealed that only (52) 47 % nurses have good knowledge and majority (59) 53% nurses have poor knowledge. Further the practices of nurses regarding dysphagia management analysis revealed that 41 % nurses have adequate practices and majority 59% nurses have inadequate practices. Conclusions: The results of the present study showed that the participants had a moderate/low knowledge practice of the definition, diagnosis, and clinical management of liquid dysphagia and inadequate. So necessary tools must be provided for their training in this field. This training must be multidisciplinary and should be directed to all professionals who provide healthcare to patients with liquid dysphagia. Keywords: knowledge, practices, dysphagia, management, elderly DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/100-04 Publication date:May 31st 202