Monitoring of Rehabilitative Nursing Practices in relation to Functional Ability for Patients with Spinal Cord Injury

Abstract

Background: Spinal cord injuries (SCI) is a serious medical status that influences the patients’ life as well as that of their family, patients with SCI need to perform daily tasks and optimize their physical and cognitive functioning. This can be achieved through rehabilitation. Rehabilitative nurses should be knowledgeable and have an experience to care for patients with SCI and prevent possible complications. Aim of the study: to monitor the rehabilitative nursing practices in relation to functional ability for patients with spinal cord injury. Setting: Medical Rehabilitation hospital in Madinah city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Design: a cross sectional descriptive and correlational design. Sample: A convenient sample of 46 nurses caring for patients with SCIs and a purposive sample of 36 patients who have SCIs based on the inclusion criteria. Tools: 1-Observational checklist assessment of rehabilitative nursing practices for patient with SCI. 2- Functional Independence Measure (FIM) instrument was used in this study. Results: nearly three quarters (71.7%) of nurses had inadequate practices regarding total rehabilitative nursing practices for patients with SCI, while only around quarter (28.3%) of nurses had adequate of practice, the mean score of total functional independent measure were (85.58±20.92). Conclusion: the present study concluded that nearly three quarter of nurses had inadequate practices regarding total rehabilitative nursing practices for patients with SCI. Concerning total motor functional independence measure; it was found that more than half of patients needed helper with modified dependence. Additionally, the highest majority of patients did not needed helper regarding cognitive functional. There was a positive correlation between types of injury with motor functional independence measure. Finally, there were no significant correlation between total rehabilitative nurses’ practices for patients with spinal cord injury, motor, cognitive and total FIM of the patients. Recommendations: The study recommended future research is required in replicating the study at different settings with large sample size in Saudi Arabia with the aim of generalizing the results.