Are Nursing Students Ready to Provide Quality Care to Patients with Epilepsy? A Comparative Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Aim: This study was conducted to examine whether nursing students studying in three different regions of Turkey are sufficiently prepared to provide quality care to patients with epilepsy. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study was conducted between January 3 and 28, 2022, with 516 (43% participation) nursing students studying in three different regions of Turkey (Central Anatolia Region, Western, and Eastern) and who answered online surveys. The data were collected using the Descriptive Information Form, Epilepsy Knowledge Scale (EKS), and Epilepsy Attitude Scale (EAS). Results: The mean EAS score of the participants was 58.57 ± 8.88, while their mean ECS score was 9.32 ± 3.17. It was found that 80.4% of the students correctly responded that a patient’s contraction should not be stopped during an epileptic seizure; 94.2% correctly responded that the tight clothes of a person having a seizure should be loosened; 87% correctly responded that nothing should be given from the mouth to a person having a seizure; 67% correctly responded that the hands and jaw of a person having a seizure should not be opened; 68% correctly responded that a person having a seizure should not be made to smell onion and garlic; and 81.8% correctly responded that cardiac massage and artificial respiration should be given to a person having an epileptic seizure. It was found that the EAS score of the students from Central Anatolia was higher compared to those of the students studying in the West and East regions. Additionally, it was found that the EAS and EKS scores of fourth-year students were higher than those of second- and third-year students. The EKS variable was found to have a positive and significant effect on the EAS score. Conclusion: In this study, it was found that the epilepsy knowledge level of the participants was moderate. Their attitudes toward epilepsy were found to be positive and high. It was determined that there is a serious lack of knowledge regarding intervention procedures for epileptic seizures as well as that, as they passed to subsequent years of study, participants’ attitudes and knowledge regarding epilepsy increased. Moreover, as the participants’ knowledge about epilepsy increased, their positive attitudes also increased.