Effect of Educational Program Regarding Care of Patients with Intra-Aortic Balloon Pump on Critical Care Nurses' Knowledge and Practice

Background: The intra-aortic balloon pump is a mechanical circulatory assist device used in some cardiac disorders to enhance coronary perfusion and reduce afterload through synchronized balloon inflation and deflation within the aorta. Aim: To evaluate effect of educational program regarding care of patients with intra-aortic balloon pump on critical care nurses' knowledge and practice. Design: A quasi-experimental research design with one group was used. Setting: The study conducted in the Cardio-Thoracic care unit and the Coronary Care Unit at Suez Canal University Hospitals in Ismailia city, Egypt in addition to the Cardio-Thoracic care unit and the Coronary Care Unit at specialized hospital in El Giza, Cairo. Subjects: A purposive sample of sixty critical care nurses who involved in direct patient care is considered the main subject in this study. Tools: Two tools used to collect data: Tool (I) Nurses' self-administered knowledge questionnaire to assess nurses’ knowledge regarding IABP, Tool (II) Nurses' practice observational checklists to assess nurses’ level of practice regarding intra-aortic balloon pump care and management. Results: It showed that the studied nurses' knowledge regarding intra-aortic balloon pump was unsatisfactory in 69% of nurses’ in the assessment phase to be satisfactory during immediate and after three months post educational program implementation as 86.6% and 73.3% of nurses respectively. Also, 65% of the studied nurses had unsatisfactory total level of practice during the assessment phase to be satisfactory during immediate and after three months post educational program implementation as 86.7% & 76.7% of nurses, respectively. Conclusion: there was a statistically significant improvement in nurses’ total knowledge and practice levels regarding care of patients with an intra-aortic balloon pump immediately and after three months post-implementation of the educational program with statistically significant difference. Recommendations: implement standardized care protocol and critical care guidelines for intra-aortic balloon pump management across the critical care units.