Determining the knowledge level of healthcare professionals about physical examination findings of congenital heart diseases

Introduction and Purpose: Congenital heart diseases (CHD) constitute 10% of neonatal deaths and are responsible for approximately half of all infant deaths. The aim of this study is to determine the knowledge level of healthcare professionals in the delivery room, gynecology-maternity service and neonatal intensive care units regarding the physical examination findings of CHD. Materials and Methods: The population of this descriptive study consists of midwives and nurses actively working in the delivery room, gynecology-maternity service and neonatal intensive care units in hospitals in Tokat city center and districts (N=158). No sample selection was made, 128 people were reached on a voluntary basis. In the study, an introductory information form and a CHD knowledge test prepared by scanning the literature were used, and data were collected through face-to-face interviews and based on self-report. In the knowledge test, the questions were grouped as inspection, auscultation, palpation and other applications, and correct answers were calculated as 1 point and incorrect answers were calculated as 0 points, for a total of 32 points. Independent groups t-test, one-way analysis of variance and post hoc (Tukey, LSD) analyzes were used. In the study, the relationship between continuous variables was tested with Pearson correlation analysis. Results: The average age of the participants (n=128) was 34.72±9.37, the average number of years of professional experience was 12.51±9.93, 49.20% were undergraduate graduates, and 41.40% were delivery room workers. It was stated that the scores of the participants in the areas of total knowledge, inspection, auscultation, palpation and other applications were moderate. A statistically significant difference was found in the knowledge scores in terms of the participants' "education status" and "previously identifying CHD symptoms" characteristics (p<0.05). No significant relationship was detected between the characteristics of the participants and their knowledge scores. Conclusion: In this study, it was determined that healthcare professionals caring for newborns had moderate knowledge about CHD physical examination findings. It is important to take measures both individually and institutionally to increase the necessary knowledge and skills and to eliminate deficiencies. Key Words: Newborn, Congenital Heart Diseases, Midwife, Nurse, Knowledge Level, physical examination