Browsing by Author "Munenguni, Elise Taati"

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    Knowledge, attitude and practices regarding legal and ethical standards in nursing practice among nurses at district hospitals in Namibia
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2024-03) Munenguni, Elise Taati; Hector, Dawn; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Nursing & Midwifery.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY: Background: At district hospitals in Namibia, it remains a concern regarding the practices of the legal and ethical standards among nurses. This concern may be associated with the adherence and level of knowledge and attitude regarding the legal and ethical standards in nursing. In order to provide safe and high-quality care to patients it is deemed necessary for the nurses to possess adequate knowledge, favourable attitude as well as excellent level of implementing practices regarding the legal and ethical standards in nursing. It is for this reason that the aim of the study was to investigate the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding the legal and ethical standards in nursing practice among nurses at district hospitals in Namibia. Methods: A quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive design was applied in the study. The total study population of 239 who met the criteria were given the opportunity to partake in this study to target 161 participants for the study. Ethical clearance was granted by the Health Research Ethics Committee of Stellenbosch University en health ministry of Namibia. The data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire tested with Cronbach Alpha score 0.847. Hundred and fifty-one nurses agreed to partake in the study however only 144 questionnaires were completed and returned. Stata statistical software, version 17 was used to analyse the data and to determine comparisons between the variables. Results: The study revealed that the participants had good knowledge as the mean knowledge score was 80.63%. However, the participants had an unfavourable attitude towards the legal and ethical standards in nursing with a mean score of 52.77%. In addition, the participants had poor practices regarding the legal and ethical standards in nursing with a mean score of 67.31%, which is <80%. The Two-sample t-test shows significance when comparing knowledge with the gender ( females scored higher) and nursing categories (registered nurses scored higher); the Pearson chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests show a significance in the association of attitude and practice with age, nursing categories, qualification and work experience; ANOVA test result show significance in the participants qualification and the their knowledge score and Bonferonni post-hoc results found statistically significant between a two year Certificate in enrolled nursing and midwifery and a 4-year Diploma in comprehensive nursing and midwifery science ( p<0.05). Conclusion: The study revealed that the nurses' attitudes are unfavourable towards the legal and ethical standards in nursing. Although they possessed sufficient knowledge, they had poor application practices in relation to the legal and ethical standards in nursing. Therefore, it is recommended that stakeholders of nursing practice at the district hospitals increase awareness and strengthen the culture of legal and ethical standards of the profession.