Nurses' knowledge of stroke-related oropharyngeal dysphagia in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
Kerry Knight, Bhavani Pillay, Jeannie Van der Linde and 1 others
PMID 32896133WHAT IT FOUND
Nurses in South Africa showed moderate knowledge of stroke-related swallowing issues but held dangerous misconceptions.
Most believed patients always cough when aspirating, missing silent aspiration risks. They also poorly identified complications like pneumonia and appropriate management strategies, highlighting a critical need for targeted training.
Key findings
0183.1% of nurses incorrectly believed that coughing is always present during aspiration, indicating poor awareness of silent aspiration.
02Nurses scored lowest on identifying complications, with only 52.3% correctly identifying pneumonia as a risk.
03Only 26.9% of participants had received specific training on oropharyngeal dysphagia, despite 96.2% expressing a desire for further training.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was conducted in a single metropolitan area in the Eastern Cape, limiting generalisability. Self-reported knowledge may not reflect actual clinical practice or competency. The sample was purposive, which may introduce selection bias.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest or funding sources are reported in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that nurses' moderate overall scores mean they can safely manage swallowing risks. The high rate of belief that aspiration always causes coughing is a critical safety gap, as it leads to missing silent aspiration, a primary risk factor for pneumonia and death in stroke patients.