Cath Lab Digest

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Abstract

Pressure ulcers are a common complication of spinal cord injury (SCI). Pressure ulcer education programs for spinal cord injured individuals have been found to have a positive effect on care protocol adherence. A prospective study was conducted among hospitalized spinal cord-injured men and women to determine if viewing the Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management Education for Adults with Spinal Cord Injury: E-Learning Program affects their knowledge scores. A 20-question multiple-choice pre-/post learning test was developed and validated by 12 rehabilitation nurses. Twenty (20) patients (13 men, seven women; mean age 49 years, [SD: 18.26] with injuries to the cervical [seven], thoracic [six], and lumbar [six] regions) volunteered. Most (42%) had completed high school and time since SCI ranged from 2 weeks to 27 years. Eighteen (18) participants completed both the pre- and post test. Of those, 16 showed improvement in pressure ulcer knowledge scores. The median scores improved from 65 (range 25 to 100) pre-program to 92.5 (range 75 to 100) post-program. Descriptive statistics, Student’s t-test, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyze the data. The results suggest that a single viewing of this e-learning program could improve pressure ulcer knowledge of hospitalized adults with SCI. Research to ascertain the effects of this and other educational programs on pressure ulcer rates is needed.

Key Words: prospective study, patient education, spinal cord injury, pressure ulcers, pre-test/post test

Index: Ostomy Wound Management 2010;56(8):xx–xx

Potential Conflicts of Interest: The authors provided no relevant disclosures. The development of the web-based program was supported by Grant #528 (PI: Jane Schubart) from the Paralyzed Veterans Association Education and Training Foundation and developed at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, 2004–2006.

  Pressure ulcer development continues to be a common complication, second only to respiratory illness, among spinal cord-injured persons.^1,2 Approximately 85% of spinal cord-injured persons will develop a pressure ulcer during their lifetime despite available evidence-based prevention programs.^3,4 To be effective, an education program must be individualized for spinal cord-injured persons^2,5-7 (most are designed for inpatients in rehabilitation facilities, not for patients in acute care) and should include an assessment of the person’s learning abilities and a test of the knowledge and skills retained.^6,8 Yet methods to satisfactorily appraise the information retained by the spinal cord-injured person are rare.⁵
  A prospective study was conducted to determine if viewing the Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management Education for Adults with Spinal Cord Injury: E-Learning Program affected spinal cord-injured patient knowledge about the identification, prevention, and early detection of pressure ulcers.

  Identical tests were administered before and after viewing the program and results assessed. This is the first study of the E-Learning Program.