Assessment of Nurses' Knowledge and Attitude about Hypoglycemia at Mosul City Hospital

Background and aim:- Hypoglycemia, one of the acute complications of diabetes mellitus, It carries a lot of adverse effects on the patient psychic and mental state plus the bad sequels on the cardiovascular system and central nervous system that may prove to be fatal. Nurses, working in hospitals, are supposed to be reasonably educated and skillful in detecting hypoglycemia and presenting the first aids that may save the patients' life. In Mosul's hospitals, the knowledge and attitude of nurses about hypoglycemia have not been explored or assessed, a matter that was motivating to study this issue. So, this study aimed to assess of Nurses' Knowledge and Attitude About Hypoglycemia at Mosul City Hospitals. Materials and method: A descriptive cross sectional study carried throughout the period 2nd of December 2013 -to- 31st of January 2015. The sample of the study was a non-probability convenience sample which included 247 nurses (males and females) working in six teaching hospitals in Mosul. The data were analyzed using the statistical package for social science (SPSS) program version 17 throughout the application of descriptive statistic (frequency, mean, standard deviation and percentage) and inferential statistics (t-test and ANOVA-one way test). Results:- The findings of the study indicated that the total nurses' knowledge concerning hypoglycemia was found to be highly significant. However, the mean scores gained in different knowledge categories were moderate except that of causes and risk factors were low. The positive nurses' attitude toward hypoglycemia was found to be highly significant. Also the study showed that there are significant correlation between nurses' knowledge scale and attitude scale. Conclusions:- There are significant differences in nurses' knowledge but, mean score answers in regard to knowledge categories were moderate except that of causes and risk factors was low. also the differences was significant in relation to positive attitudes. Recommendation:- The study recommends preparing, developing and implicating educational programs about hypoglycemia; its complications in Mosul's hospitals. In addition, the study suggests improving the curriculum in regard to diabetes and its complications. Keywords: Nurses', Knowledge, Attitude, Hypoglycemia.