Compliance with care standards and professional knowledge of operating theatre personnel before, during and after laparoscopic bariatric surgery: A study in public hospitals in Iran.

Abstract

Introduction: By adhering to care standards, many adverse outcomes for patients, such as pressure injuries, tissue necrosis and patient falls, can be prevented. The aim of this study was to investigate the level of compliance with care standards before, during and after various types of bariatric surgeries.

Materials and methods: This study was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted in the operating theatres of selected teaching hospitals in Isfahan (Iran). The study sample consisted of all operating theatre personnel in the selected teaching hospitals who met the inclusion criteria. Compliance with care standards was measured using a researcher-developed checklist. A researcher-developed questionnaire with 43 true/false questions was used to evaluate the operating theatre personnel's professional knowledge. The data were analysed using SPSS version 20 and descriptive and inferential statistics.

Results: The mean score of adherence to care standards and the mean score of professional knowledge of operating theatre personnel regarding care of laparoscopic bariatric surgery were 78.35 ± 9.49 and 29.45 ± 6.17, respectively. There is no significant relationship between these two variables, with a two-tailed significance (Sig.) of 0.056 and a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.199.

Discussion and conclusion: In general, it can be concluded that the specific knowledge of the local operating theatre personnel regarding minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery care is at an intermediate level. Requirements for training in this area were therefore successfully identified. In addition, not all operating theatre personnel adhere to the standards of care for patients undergoing laparoscopic bariatric surgery. This non-adherence could be due to insufficient training or the absence of established standards in hospitals.