Approach to fever in children among final-year nursing students: a multicenter survey

BMC Nursing

Research

Anne Destrebecq¹  Paola Marchisio²  Gregorio P. Milani³  Antonio Corsello³  Diego Peroni⁴  Patrizio Sannino⁵  Barbara Cantoni⁵  Mario G. Bianchetti⁶  Ilaria Falvo⁷  Marta Fadda⁷  Elena Chiappini⁸ 

[1] Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy;Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy;Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, Italy;Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy;Pediatric Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, via della Commenda 9, 20122, Milan, Italy;Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Section of Pediatrics, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy;Direzione Professioni Sanitarie, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy;Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland;Institute of Public Health, Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland;Pediatric Infectious Disease Unit, Department of Health Sciences, Meyer Children’s University Hospital, University of Florence, Florence, Italy;

关键词: Education;    Children;    Fever phobia;    Inappropriate treatment;    Evidence;    Physical methods;    Education;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12912-023-01263-3

 received in 2022-11-10, accepted in 2023-03-22,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundUnfounded concerns regarding fever are increasingly observed among nurses worldwide. However, no study has so far explored the preferred approach towards pediatric fever among nursing students. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the attitude towards pediatric fever among final-year nursing students.MethodsBetween February and June 2022, final-year nursing students of 5 Italian university hospitals were asked to answer an online survey on their approach to fever in children. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were utilized. Multiple regression models were employed to explore the existence of moderators on fever conceptions.ResultsThe survey was filled in by 121 nursing students (response rate 50%). Although most students (98%) do not consider discomfort to treat fever in children, only a minority would administer a second dose of the same antipyretic in nonresponsive cases (5.8%) or would alternate antipyretic drugs (13%). Most students would use physical methods to decrease fever (84%) and do not think that fever has mainly beneficial effects in children (72%). The own know-how adequacy on fever was inversely associated (OR 0.33, 95% CI 0.13–0.81) with the beliefs that high fever might lead to brain damage. No further predictive variable was significantly associated with the concern that fever might be associated with brain damage, the advice of physical methods use, and the assumption that fever has mostly positive effects.DiscussionThis study shows for the first time that misconceptions and inappropriate attitudes towards fever in children are common among final-year nursing students. Nursing students could potentially be ideal candidates for improving fever management within clinical practice and amongst caregivers.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023