The results of this study highlighted the respondents’ views to the management on the importance to align the approach of sponsoring CPD courses according to the nurses’ needs in order to meet their context of practice. The management also ought to take into consideration the identified challenges encountered by the nurses to participate in CPD upon achieving their mandatory CPD points specified by MNB.
Education, Nursing

Background: In Malaysia the percentage of diploma registered nurses outnumber the percentage of degree registered nurses. Internationally, most registered nurses earn associate degrees or bachelor’s degrees in nursing. Malaysia is in the pipeline of ensuring that its registered nurses are professionally qualified with nursing degree by year 2020. Registered nurses with diploma qualification are feeling the pressure to upgrade their qualification to degree. There are concerns as to why these nurses are not pursuing their post registration nursing degree. Objective: To determine factors that are deterring the registered nurses of a private hospital in Penang from pursuing the post registered nursing degree. Methods: This descriptive study utilised a convenient sample of 150 registered nurses from Lam Wah Ee Hospital in Penang. The instrument of this study was developed based on literature search and the conceptual framework of Force Fields Analysis developed by Kurt Lewin in 1952. Results: The deterring factors for registered nurses not pursuing post registration nursing degree from this hospital were determined through negative mean score, which was valued at less than 2.5. The top 3 deterring factors identified were: high educational cost, with a score of 1.92; financial commitment, with a score of 2.22 and time constraints and high workload, with a score of 2.27. Conclusions: High educational cost, financial commitment, time constraint and high workload were the main factors deterring the registered nurses from this hospital from pursuing their post registration nursing degree. Thus it is timely for the organisational management to consider workable measures to assist and motivate their nurses to upgrade themselves with nursing degree in line with Malaysia’s vision to meet the increasing challenges and complex needs in the care of clients in health services.
Education, Nursing

Nurses are the highest numbered healthcare professionals who work in a knowledgedriven environment, where accurate and updated information is needed when delivering care to clients. Information literacy has therefore become one of the criteria in determining nurses’ readiness for evidencebased practice in recent years. In the actual day-to-day care practice, are nurses ready for this? Objective: To determine the information literacy competency in readiness for evidence-based practice among clinical practicing registered nurses in a private hospital in Penang, Malaysia
Evidence-Based Practice ; Nurses ; Education, Nursing

Abstract: Surgeries are seen as stressors that trigger preoperative anxiety. Preparing the patients for surgery through preoperative teaching becomes crucial to allay anxiety level. In a cross sectional descriptive study conducted on eighty patients (age: 18–65 yr) who had undergone open abdominal surgery, 78.8% (n=63) stated that they experienced anxiety prior to surgery. Among these anxious respondents, 47.5% (n=38) experienced high state anxiety. Three of the top information that patients perceived as important to allay anxiety towards major surgery were: details of surgery, details of nursing care to surgery and information on anaesthesia. Nurses working in the surgical wards need to proactively address patients’ psychological concerns towards surgery and provide preoperative information based on patients’ needs to allay anxiety.

Background: Psychosocial care remains an important component in holistic care nursing and is crucial for patients’ recovery outcomes. Objective: The purpose of the study was to determine nurses’ perception towards their role in psychosocial care. Methodology: The research design was descriptive and cross-sectional. Nurses’ Role in Psychosocial Care Questionnaire (NRPCQ) was used for data collection and approximately 110 registered nurses (response rate = 52.38%) participated in the study via convenience sampling. Descriptive and inferential statistics, Mann-Whitney U test were used for data analysis. Results: In general, nurses’ perception towards their role in providing psychosocial care was positive (M = 73.71, SD ± 12.20). Items on “demonstrating warmth and friendliness by smiling” (M = 3.92, SD ± 0.28); and “explaining nursing procedures or interventions to the patient” (M = 3.88, SD ± 0.32) were rated most positive. Nevertheless, items on “referring patients to other health care team members” (M = 3.32, SD ± 0.83), and “discussing with patient and patient’s family regarding planned care” (M = 3.44, SD ± 0.69) were rated the least positive. The Mann-Whitney U test analysis revealed significant association between nurses’ age and perception towards their role in psychosocial care (p = 0.025), in which the older nurses have a more positive perception towards their role in psychosocial care than the younger nurses. Conclusion: The findings highlighted some important gaps in the practice of psychosocial care among the registered nurses. The information serves as a baseline for the planning and implementing of relevant strategies in enhancing nurses’ role in psychosocial care provision.
Perception ; Role ; Psychiatric Rehabilitation ; Nurses ; Hospitals

Background: Physical examination in nursing practice is a systematic process of checking patients from head to toe using inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation techniques. This is part of a process to assist nurses in determining nursing diagnoses for patients’ care needs. A trained nurse with competent assessment skills can monitor treatment outcome and rapidly detect early signs of deterioration in patients. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the perceived personal competence, the frequency of use of physical examination techniques, the factors that influenced physical examination practices and to identify training needs on physical examination skills among the registered nurses (RNs) in a selected private hospital in Malaysia. Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study. A self-reporting questionnaire was adapted with permission and pilot tested to ensure its suitability for use in this local study. A total of 154 registered nurses (RNs) from various clinical areas responded to this survey. Results: The regularly used physical examination techniques by the RNs were mostly inspection and vital signs assessment. The frequency of physical examination skills used was higher among RNs with 4-5 years of working experience. Lack of time, role boundaries/scope of practice and ward culture were some of the factors identified that influenced nurses’ physical examination practices. Physical examinations of the cardiovascular, neurological and respiratory systems were the top three skills asserted as training needs by the RNs. Conclusions Inspection technique and vital signs checking are commonly practiced at ease by the RNs, but they perceived that they were least competent with palpation, percussion and auscultation techniques. Physical examination training is vital to ensure that the RNs keep their skills current in their nursing practice.