Implementation status of nursing for lymphedema in Jiangsu

Objective To investigate the training, operation and examination of nursing care for lymphedema in Jiangsu Province. Methods We selected 99 nurses provided nursing care for lymphedema at 13 class Ⅲ hospitals of prefecture-level city in Jiangsu Province as subjects by purposive sampling. All of nurses were investigated with the self-designed questionnaire involving general information, application and training of nursing care for lymphedema, nursing operation and examination of lymphedema. Results Among 99 nurses, 68 (68.69%) nurses could carry out training regularly, and 59 (59.60%) nurses participated in training on nursing care for lymphedema. The main causes failing to could carry out training regularly included the teaching staff and lack of related content. Conclusions At present, the training of nursing care for lymphedema needs to be strengthened. There is a pressing need to formulate the unified standardized operation and examination standards so as to improve the quality of work and professional connotation of nursing care for lymphedema. Key words: Lymphedema; Nursing; Training; Examination