Exploring Perspectives of Nurses and Midwives on Pain Management after Caesarean Section at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital

Abstract

Globally, caesarean section has gained increasing attention as the most frequently performed surgical procedure. The assessment and management of pain related to this surgery must therefore be discussed. There is a lack of empirical data on the factors that affect nurses' and midwives' assessments of and management of post-operative pain in a resource- constrained setting like Ghana, despite the fact that they play crucial roles in providing post- operative pain management for puerperal women after caesarean sections. Against this backdrop, this study aimed to explore from nurses and midwives’ perspective, the factors that influence assessment and management of post-operative pain after caesarean section at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital. An exploratory-descriptive qualitative design and an interpretivism approach was employed. A purposefully sampled group of 16 nurses and midwives were interviewed using an interview guide that was designed in accordance with the concepts of the Pain Transaction Model. The study employed content analysis using the Braun and Clarke's (2006) approach to analyse the data Three main themes emerged from the study, which were nurse/midwife related factors, perceived nurse/midwife skills, and challenges associated with the assessment and management of post-operative pain. In addition to the three themes, seven sub-themes emerged. Findings suggest the need for nurses to make conscious efforts to get abreast with current trends in the assessment and management of post-operative pain.