Abstract:
Background: The respiratory system provides oxygen to and removes carbon dioxide from the body however the inability to perform either or both of these tasks results in respiratory failure. Aim: The present study aimed to assess the critical care nurses' performance regarding use of neuromuscular blocking agents in patients with respiratory failure. Design: A descriptive research design was used. Setting: This study was carried out at Aswan University Hospital in intensive care units. Subjects: A convenient sample of (100) nurses who provided care for patients with respiratory failure and administrated neuromuscular blocking agents at the previous mentioned setting. Tools: data were collected through using two tools. Tool I: Nurses' self- administered interview questionnaire consisted of two parts: part I, Nurses' demographic characteristics. part II, Nurses' knowledge assessment questionnaire. Tool II: Nurses' practice observational checklist. Results: The study finding indicated that 74.0% of the studied nurses had unsatisfactory level of total knowledge about using of neuromuscular blocking agents in patients with respiratory failure. 78.0% of the studied nurses had incompetent level of total practice. There was a significant statistical relationship between nurse's total level of knowledge and their educational level and attending training courses about neuromuscular blocking agents. Conclusion: There was a statistically significant positive correlation between nurse's total level of knowledge and their total level of practice. Recommendation: Providing continuous educational training program to improve nurses' knowledge and practice regarding use of neuromuscular blocking agents in patients with respiratory failure.