Table 3.
Responses to questionnaire items on systematic assessment and alleviation of symptoms
| Registered Nurses (RNs) (N = 21–22) | Assistant nurses (ANs) (N = 109–120) | Differences between RNs and ANs | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perceived reality (PR) | Subjective importance (SI) | p‐value* | Perceived reality (PR) | Subjective importance (SI) | p‐value* | Perceived reality (PR) | |
| Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | p‐value** | |||
| Implementation of the LCP means that … | |||||||
| … I have been given a tool for identifying the patient's symptoms and problems. | 3.41 (0.73) | 3.18 (1.18) | 0.30 | 3.44 (0.78) | 3.62 (0.65) | 0.01 | 0.74 |
| … physical symptoms and problems are identified. | 3.41 (0.73) | 3.27 (1.16) | 0.62 | 3.37 (0.78) | 3.68 (0.58) | 0.00 | 0.92 |
| … psychological symptoms and problems are identified. | 3.41 (0.80) | 3.32 (1.17) | 0.81 | 3.24 (0.81) | 3.65 (0.59) | 0.00 | 0.32 |
| … existential symptoms and needs are identified. | 2.95 (0.84) | 3.14 (1.17) | 0.59 | 3.08 (0.84) | 3.57 (0.64) | 0.00 | 0.50 |
| … physical symptoms and problems are relieved. | 3.55 (0.67) | 3.36 (1.18) | 0.57 | 3.38 (0.74) | 3.69 (0.57) | 0.00 | 0.36 |
| … psychological symptoms and problems are relieved. | 3.10 (0.89) | 3.25 (1.21) | 0.34 | 3.16 (0.73) | 3.69 (0.58) | 0.00 | 0.90 |
| … existential symptoms and needs are relieved. | 2.81 (0.93) | 3.19 (1.17) | 0.18 | 3.06 (0.75) | 3.58 (0.62) | 0.00 | 0.25 |
| … overall symptom relief is achieved. | 3.45 (0.67) | 3.43 (1.12) | 1.00 | 3.41 (0.72) | 3.80 (0.50) | 0.00 | 0.89 |
| Implementation of the LCP means systematic assessment and alleviation of symptoms such as | |||||||
| Pain | 3.68 (0.65) | 3.52 (1.03) | 0.67 | 3.53 (0.74) | 3.86 (0.42) | 0.00 | 0.29 |
| Anxiety/agitation | 3.64 (0.66) | 3.52 (1.03) | 0.80 | 3.50 (0.77) | 3.86 (0.42) | 0.00 | 0.43 |
| Respiratory tract secretions | 3.73 (0.63) | 3.52 (1.03) | 0.53 | 3.50 (0.77) | 3.84 (0.45) | 0.00 | 0.14 |
| Nausea/vomiting | 3.68 (0.65) | 3.52 (1.03) | 0.53 | 3.50 (0.76) | 3.83 (0.48) | 0.00 | 0.23 |
| Dyspnoea | 3.64 (0.66) | 3.52 (1.03) | 0.80 | 3.52 (0.77) | 3.86 (0.40) | 0.00 | 0.50 |
| Oedema | 3.32 (0.89) | 3.19 (1.25) | 0.67 | 3.48 (0.77) | 3.83 (0.44) | 0.00 | 0.45 |
| Itching | 3.27 (1.03) | 3.19 (1.25) | 0.80 | 3.35 (0.82) | 3.75 (0.52) | 0.00 | 0.96 |
| Hiccups | 3.14 (1.12) | 3.05 (1.24) | 0.94 | 3.28 (0.89) | 3.62 (0.70) | 0.00 | 0.82 |
| Since implementation of the LCP the care has improved regarding | |||||||
| Oral care | 2.77 (1.11) | 3.20 (1.24) | 0.04 | 3.37 (0.86) | 3.80 (0.44) | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| Urinary problems | 2.68 (1.04) | 3.10 (1.25) | 0.03 | 3.32 (0.90) | 3.77 (0.52) | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| Pressure ulcers | 2.77 (1.19) | 3.15 (1.27) | 0.08 | 3.40 (0.90) | 3.83 (0.46) | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| Psychological support | 2.50 (1.10) | 3.10 (1.33) | 0.01 | 2.84 (0.99) | 3.70 (0.62) | 0.00 | 0.17 |
| Religious and existential needs | 2.36 (1.05) | 3.00 (1.21) | 0.01 | 2.67 (0.96) | 3.53 (0.73) | 0.00 | 0.15 |
LCP, Liverpool Care Pathway; SD, standard deviation.
*
Wilcoxon signed‐rank test (two‐tailed);
**
Mann–Whitney U test (two‐tailed).