Individual Protection Adopted by ICU Nurses against Radiation and its Related Factors

Abstract Introduction: not following safety tips during mobile radiography can bring about risks for nurses in ICU wards. Objective: the study aimed to determine the status of personal protection against radiation and its associated factors in nurses working in ICU wards of health care-educational centers affiliated with Guilan University of Medical Sciences in Rasht, Iran. Materials and Methods: in this cross-sectional analytical study, the knowledge and performance of 142 nurses in ICU wards were examined in terms of personal protection against radiation as well as the protective equipment and facilities available through census. The data collection instruments included a research-made questionnaire and checklist. The questionnaire consisted of two sections: the first dealt with personal-occupational information, while the second section included 11 four-option questions related to knowledge about protection against radiation. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistical indices (mean, standard deviation, Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis, and logistic regression) were used. Results: the findings indicated that 64.1% of samples were women, 62.7% were married, and 90.1% had bachelor’s degree. Considering employment status, 52.1% were permanent employed, while 86.6% were in turn taking nurses. A total of 41.5% of samples had a working background of less than 5 years, and 97.9% of them had not participated in any course for protection against radiation. The results also indicated that most samples (62.7%) had poor knowledge about personal protection against radiation, and only 37.3% of samples had medium knowledge, and finally none of them had favorable level of knowledge. None of the ICU wards were equipped with necessary and sufficient equipment, among which only lead divider was sufficiently available in all wards. Regarding the protective performance of samples, the results showed that 100% of samples had a poor performance. There was a significant relationship between the knowledge of protection against radiation and gender (P=0.01), being married (P=0.041), and education (P=0.016). A significant relationship was also observed between the protective performance of samples and gender (P=0.011), training method (P=0.006), and age (P=0.005). Conclusion: Considering the poor knowledge of the studied samples and inadequacy of equipment regarding protection against radiation, and in response to poor performance, training nurses and equipping the ICU wards seem to be essential.