Question 12 - Reading Comprehension Practice Test for the HESI Exam

A quantitative descriptive study focused on the attitudes of nurses toward chronic pain found in the cancer patient population. The study sample was composed of 93 nurses from three hospitals with an average age of 30.54 years. Of these, 45.2% had a bachelor’s degree.

Throughout their professional careers, 91.4% of the nurses said they had acquired training in the assessment and treatment of pain. A small percentage, 18.3%, acquired this training through postgraduate studies or equivalent. However, 76.5% of these nurses found their training insufficient and experienced difficulties in the assessment of chronic pain in cancer patients.

The study concluded that many nurses have little knowledge about cancer-related pain in the areas of pain assessment, pain management, psychological pain, spiritual pain, and the side effects of analgesic therapy. The results suggest the need for more training in the area of pain and pain assessment in this population.