The effect of gi̇ven training on the anxiety level of patients before thyroidectomy

Anxiety is a troublesome feeling of worry and fear that threatens life or is perceived as a threat to life. Hospitalization and surgical interventions are of high importance in causing anxiety among patients. The current study aimed to identify whether or not training given to patients to have thyroidectomy before the surgery through information booklet affected their anxiety levels. The population of the study was composed of patients who were planned to have thyroidectomy at General Surgery Clinics of Balcalı Hospital of Çukurova University Medicine Faculty and Numune Training and Research Hospital of Public Hospitals Union between the 14th of January, 2013 and the 10th of June, 2015. The sample of the study was composed of a total of 62 patients from the population who met the inclusion criteria and were voluntary to join the study and 32 of them were assigned to the experimental group while 30 of them to the control group. For the data collection; "Individual Information Form" and "Surgery Specific Anxiety Scale-SSAS" were employed. To the patients of the control group routine information procedure was performed while to the experimental group a training was given through "Thyroidectomy Information Booklet". For the assessment of the data; SPSS 18 was used. For the statistical analyses; descriptive statistics, X2 and t test were used. p<0.05 was accepted to be significant. As a result, it was found out that the training given by nurses before the surgery to the patients who were planned to have thyroidectomy using Thyroidectomy Information Booklet did not affect their surgery specific anxiety level. Key words: Thyroidectomy, anxiety, surgery specific anxiety, nursing training