The Impact of Programs Designed to Empower Nurses with Skills for Physical Health Assessment

There is no doubt that the skills for physical health assessment, enables nurses to correctly identify unusual items and provide the basis for the development of nursing diagnosis and plan of care. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of programs designed to empower nurses with skills for the physical health assessment.
This study was quasi-experimental. Overall, 107 nurses were selected based on the inclusion criteria. They were randomly allocation to two groups. Collection tools were a demographic questionnaire and “Self-Assessment of Nurses in Physical Health Assessment Skill Questionnaire”. The intervention group was taught skills for physical health assessment during twelve sessions (30 minutes). Statistical analysis was performed using descriptive and inferential statistical tests.
No statistically significant differences were found between age, gender, education level and other demographic information. The two groups were homogeneous at baseline in mean scores of history taking, physical examination and health assessment (P = 0.493). Data analysis after the program showed that there was a significant difference between the intervention and control group in history taking (P = 0.0000), physical examination (P = 0.0000) and health assessment (P = 0.0000).
The empowerment program improved nurses’ skills in health assessment. Therefore, it is suggested as an effective and practical method to improve knowledge and skills.