Attitudes of Registered Nurses caring for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in an acute care setting: A mixed method study

Volume 7, Issue 4, August 2022     |     PP. 262-266      |     PDF (301 K)    |     Pub. Date: July 31, 2022
DOI: 10.54647/cm32881    70 Downloads     4650 Views  

Author(s)

Marie Lourdes Charles, Pace University-College of Health Professions-Lienhard School of Nursing, United States
Kathleen Marsala-Cervasio, City University of New York-CUNY School of Professional Studies, United States

Abstract
Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) avoidable health disparities, which may be related to healthcare professionals’ attitudes. To examine the attitudes and experiences of nurses caring for adults with I/DD in the acute care setting.Methods A mixed method approach was utilized. Data was collected from January to March 2021. Data collection consisted of the ATDP-B questionnaire completed by 31 RNs and Eight RNs interviewed via Zoom. ResultsQuantitative data from the ATDP-B questionnaire revealed most nurses had negative attitudes towards disabled persons. Four themes emerged from the qualitative data: Experience, setting, emotional responses, and education. DiscussionPractice implications include knowledge deficits and lack of confidence reported by the participants. Incorporating nursing care of adults with I/DD in the curriculum and in practice may improve patient safety and health equity for all individuals.

Keywords
Attitudes, acute care, nurses, nursing education, adults, intellectual disabilities, developmental disabilities

Cite this paper
Marie Lourdes Charles, Kathleen Marsala-Cervasio, Attitudes of Registered Nurses caring for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in an acute care setting: A mixed method study , SCIREA Journal of Clinical Medicine. Volume 7, Issue 4, August 2022 | PP. 262-266. 10.54647/cm32881

References

[ 1 ] Ailey, S. H., Johnson, T. J., Fogg, L., & Friese, T. R. (2015). Factors related to complications among adult patients with intellectual disabilities hospitalized at an academic medical center. Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 53(2), 114-119. https://doi.org/ doi/10.1352/1934-9556-53.2.114
[ 2 ] Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational behavior and human decision processes, 50(2), 179-211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
[ 3 ] Appelgren, M., Bahtsevani, C., Persson, K. et al. (2018). Nurses’ experiences of caring for patients with intellectual developmental disorders: a systematic review using a meta-ethnographic approach. BMC Nursing, 17, 51. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-018-0316-9
[ 4 ] The Arc of Adams County. Retrieved December 22, 2020, from. https://arcadams.org
[ 5 ] Desroches, M. L., Sethares, K. A., Curtin, C., & Chung, J. (2019). Nurses' attitudes and emotions toward caring for adults with intellectual disabilities: Results of a cross-sectional, correlational-predictive research study. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities: JARID, 32(6), 1501–1513. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.12645
[ 6 ] Desroches, M. (2020). Nurses' attitudes, beliefs, and emotions toward caring for adults with intellectual disabilities: An integrative review. In Nursing Forum, 55(2) 211-222. https://doi.org/10.1111/nuf.12418
[ 7 ] Ditchman, N., Kosyluk, K., Lee, E. J., & Jones, N. (2016). How stigma affects the lives of people with intellectual disabilities: An overview. Intellectual Disability and Stigma, 31-47. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-52499-7_3
[ 8 ] Doyle, C. et al (2016) Enhancing the experience of people with intellectual disabilities who access health care. Learning Disability Practice, 19(6), 33-38. https://doi.org/10.7748/ldp.2016.e1752
[ 9 ] Fetters, M. D., Curry, L. A., & Creswell, J. W. (2013). Achieving integration in mixed methods designs-principles and practices. Health Services Research, 48(6 Pt 2), 2134–2156. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6773.12117
[ 10 ] He, W., Goodkind, D., & Kowal, P. (2016). An Aging World: 2015. Retrieved December 22, 2022, from https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2016/demo/P95-16-1.htm
[ 11 ] Hemm, C., Dagnan, D., & Meyer, T. D. (2015). Identifying training needs for mainstream healthcare professionals, to prepare them for working with individuals with intellectual disabilities: a systematic review. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities: JARID, 28(2), 98–110. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.12117
[ 12 ] Hemsley, B., Georgiou, A., Hill, S., Rollo, M., Steel, J., & Balandin, S. (2016). An integrative review of patient safety in studies on the care and safety of patients with communication disabilities in hospital. Patient Education and Counseling, 99(4), 501–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2015.10.022
[ 13 ] Krahn, G. L., & Fox, M. H. (2014). Health disparities of adults with intellectual disabilities: What do we know? What do we do? Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 27(5), 431–446. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.12067
[ 14 ] Lam, W. Y., Gunukula, S. K., McGuigan, D., Isaiah, N., Symons, A. B., & Akl, E. A. (2010). Validated instruments used to measure attitudes of healthcare students and professionals towards patients with physical disability: a systematic review. Journal of Neuroengineering and Rehabilitation, 7, 55. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-0003-7-55
[ 15 ] Lewis, P., Gaffney, R. J., & Wilson, N. J. (2017). A narrative review of acute care nurses’ experiences nursing patients with intellectual disability: underprepared, communication barriers and ambiguity about the role of caregivers. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 26(11-12), 1473-1484. https://doi:10.1111/jocn.13512
[ 16 ] Louch, G., Albutt, A., Harlow-Trigg, J., Moore, S., Smyth, K., Ramsey, L., & O'Hara, J. K. (2021). Exploring patient safety outcomes for people with learning disabilities in acute hospital settings: a scoping review. BMJ Open, 11(5), e047102. https://doi.org:10.1136/ bmjopen-2020-047102
[ 17 ] Sharkey, S., Lloyd, C., Tomlinson, R., Thomas, E., Martin, A., Logan, S., & Morris, C. (2016). Communicating with disabled children when inpatients: barriers and facilitators identified by parents and professionals in a qualitative study. Health Expectations, 19(3), 738-750. https:/doi.org: 10.1111/hex.12254
[ 18 ] Spassiani, N. A., Abou Chacra, M. S., Selick, A., Durbin, J., & Lunsky, Y. (2020). Emergency department nurses’ knowledge, skills, and comfort related to caring for patients with intellectual disabilities. International Emergency Nursing, 50, 100851. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ienj.2020.100851
[ 19 ] Tuffrey-Wijne I, Goulding L, Giatras N, et al. (2014). The barriers to and enablers of providing reasonably adjusted health services to people with intellectual disabilities in acute hospitals: evidence from a mixed-methods study. BMJ Open;4:e004606. https://doi.org/ 10.1136/bmjopen-2013-004606
[ 20 ] World Health Organization. (2015). WHO Global Disability Action Plan, 2014-2021: Better health for all people with disability. Retrieved May 6, 2021, from https://www.who.int/.../who-global-disability-action-plan-2014-2021
[ 21 ] Yuker, H. E., Young, J.R., & Block, J.H. (1970). The measurement of attitudes toward disabled persons. Retrieved December 10, 2019, from www.https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED044853.pdf