The effects of educational intervention on patient participation in pressure injury prevention: a pilot study

Abstract

Objective: Patients' roles in reducing pressure injuries (PIs) are emphasised in clinical guidelines, although patients' preferences are undetermined. This study evaluated the effects of a pilot six-month educational intervention on patient participation in PI prevention. Method: A convenience sampling method was used to select patients admitted to medical-surgical wards at one of the teaching hospitals in Tabriz, Iran. This is a one-group pre-test and post-test interventional study, conducted via quasi-experimental design. Using a pamphlet, patients received education in preventing PIs. Data collected before and after intervention through a questionnaire were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics (McNemar and paired t-tests) in SPSS software (IBM Corp., US). Results: The study cohort consisted of 153 patients. Findings revealed that the knowledge of the patients about PIs, patients' ability to talk with the nurses, information received about PIs, and patients' ability to participate in decisions related to PI prevention had significantly increased following the intervention (p<0.001). Conclusion: Educating patients can improve their knowledge to enable them to participate in PI prevention. The findings of this study suggests further research is necessary on factors influencing patients' participation in such self-care behaviours.