Investigation of the factors affecting delirium evaluation by intensive care nurses: a cross-sectional descriptive study

Abstract

Background: Studies have shown that as nurses' knowledge and awareness regarding delirium increase, their ability to evaluate and manage delirium improves significantly. Identifying the key factors that influence how nurses evaluate delirium is essential for enhancing early detection and proper management. The aim of this study was to examine the factors influencing the evaluation of delirium by intensive care nurses.

Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in a university hospital with 13 adult ICUs. The sample consisted of 110 ICU nurses selected using Cochran's formula, based on a known population, 95% confidence level, and 5% margin of error. Data were collected between March 15 and 27, 2022, using three instruments: Personal Information Form, Delirium Attitude Questionnaire, and Delirium Knowledge Test for Intensive Care Nurses (DKT-ICN).

Results: The mean level of knowledge of nurses on delirium assessment was found to be 13.92 ± 4.09 according to the DKT-ICN scale. According to the logistic regression analysis, the significant variables affecting the delirium assessment in the intensive care unit were the duration of intensive care experience (B = 0.404, p =.004; OR = 1.498), DKT-ICN score (B = 0.283, p =.004; OR = 1.327), female gender (B = -1.260, p =.041; OR = 0.284) and working in the medical intensive care unit (B = 2.477, p <.001; OR = 11.908). The model explained 49.1% of the variance in delirium assessment.

Conclusions: This study indicate that nurses' knowledge levels, unit of employment, gender, and duration of intensive care experience are significant determinants of delirium assessment practices. It is recommended that targeted training programs be developed to improve nurses' delirium assessment skills, that comprehensive surveys be used in future research, and that organizational and attitudinal factors be investigated using mixed methods designs.

Clinical trial number: Not applicable.