Knowledge, attitudes, workplace learning conditions and nurses' competence towards palliative care in a cancer hospital in China

Abstract

The aims of this research were to describe palliative care competence and examine the correlations of palliative care knowledge, attitudes, and workplace learning conditions with palliative care competence among oncology nurses. This cross-sectional correlation study was carried out in a cancer center in China. A total of 220 nurses with more than six months of experience, and who worked in inpatient wards, were invited to participate in this study; the response rate was 96.36% (212 nurses). Four questionnaires were administrated to collect data-the Palliative Care Quiz for Nurses (PCQN), the Attitudes towards Palliative Care Scale (ATPC), the Learning Conditions Scale (LCS), and the Palliative Care Nursing Self-competence Scale (PCNSC). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson's correlations. A moderate level of competence was generally reported among nurses in this cancer hospital. The scores concerning professional cooperation and communication, spiritual care, and ethical and legal issues were lower than those of the other aspects of competence. Moreover, competence was positively related to workplace learning conditions (r = .46, p< .001) and knowledge (r = .16, p < .05); however, this was not the case for the attitudes towards palliative care. The findings highlighted the necessity of improving the overall palliative care competence among nurses. The optimization of workplace learning conditions in the hospital would also be a vital force in strengthening their competence. Further efforts should focus on planning palliative care educational programs, at the same time, managing human resources better in order to build a more conducive learning environment.