The Effect of Preoperative Nursing Visit on Anxiety and Pain Level of Patients After Surgery

Purpose: Preoperative education is an important part of surgical preparation. Nursing visits offer nurses the opportunity to provide personalized care. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of nursing visits before laparoscopic surgery on the anxiety and pain levels of patients in the postoperative period.

Design: Randomized controlled clinical trial.

Methods: Data were collected from 135 patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery between March and October 2019 in Istanbul. During the nursing visits, the experimental group (n = 72) was educated by the operating room nurse, while the control group (n = 63) was educated by the service nurse. Data were collected using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Visual Analog Scale. The CONSORT checklist was followed.

Findings: The pre-education state anxiety scores of the control and experimental groups were similar and at a moderate level (P > .05). The state anxiety score of the experimental group visited by operating room nurses decreased more than that of the control group after education (P < .001). The postoperative state anxiety and pain scores of the control and experimental groups were found to be similar (P > .05).

Conclusions: Visits by operating room nurses before laparoscopic surgery can be an effective method to reduce the anxiety level of patients. Obtaining the opinions of operating room nurses on care integration and organization of in-service education programs may be necessary.