Hospitals are often the epicenter of newly circulating infections, consequently health workers are at high risk to obtain irresistible infections. Nurses are viewed as among the first to contact patients with arising diseases. Nurses with no prior experience with such contagious diseases were recruited who provided care to patients with COVID 19 in this pandemic. Objective: To investigate the experiences of nurses who have attended covid 19 pandemic patients during 2020. Methods: A qualitative study with thematic analysis was conducted, using a phenomenological approach. A total of 12 nurses have joined in-depth, semi-structured interviews, from three COVID-19-designated hospitals in the capital city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, using purposive sampling technique. Face to face interviews were conducted and their observations were recorded. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed. Results: Five major themes emerged from data analysis that included Nosophobia, Scarcity of Resources, First Line Warriors, Environmental/Physical Problems and Perceived super spreaders. Nurses identified many sources of social support during pandemic situation. Participants expressed and considered high work load, anxiety and fear and concern for patients and family members as negative emotions in early stage of pandemic crises. Conclusions: The exhaustive work drained nurses physically and emotionally. Nurses should be given a comprehensive assistance and support in protecting themselves while they have showed their strength and spirit of professional dedication to defeat hurdles and challenges, they have faced. Consistent training for nurses is important to advance preparedness and viability in future crisis management.

OBJECTIVES The overarching aim of this study was to identify the vaccination status of children under five years of age and parents’ perceptions regarding vaccination in district Hangu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. METHODOLOGY A cross-sectional survey was carried out between April 1, 2017, to May 31, 2017, in Union Council Ganjano Kaley of district Hangu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Ethics approval was obtained from the IRB of District Headquarter hospital, Hangu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Data were collected from the parents of these 100 children through an adapted questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the variables using SPSS version 20.  RESULTS Out of 100 children, 43% were males and 57% were females.  Among these, 18% were living in nuclear families while 82% were living in combined families. 77% of participants had immunization cards with them, while 23% had no immunization cards.  Regarding immunization status, 80% of children were fully immunized, 19% were partially immunized and 1% were not immunized. CONCLUSION The overall immunization coverage rate was satisfactory. Parents showed confidence in the public sector vaccination services. In view of population expansion, more vaccinators need to be employed to achieve effective and sustainable vaccination coverage.

OBJECTIVES Kidney transplantation is a surgical procedure and the best treatment choice for end-stage renal disease. This study aims to assess nurses’ level of knowledge regarding post-operative care of patients with kidney transplantation. METHODOLOGY This descriptive cross-sectional was carried out in Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC) and Rehman Medical Institute (RMI) Peshawar from February 2019 to May 2019. These are tertiary care hospitals; the former is a public sector hospital while the latter is a private sector hospital. A convenient sampling technique was followed and included 109 participants. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire of 25 items related to the care of post-renal transplantation on a Likert Scale. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for demographic variables. The Mean and standard deviation were calculated for knowledge among nurses. A Chi-square test was applied to find an association between demographic variables and level of knowledge. Data were analyzed with SPSS 20. RESULTS Of the total number of participants 109, 23 (26.6%) were females, and 77 (73.3%) were male. The mean score of knowledge was 11.59±3.391 out of 25. Of the participants, 62(56.9%) fell into the poor score, and the average score was awarded by 44 (40.4%), while 3 participants (2.8%) scored good knowledge. CONCLUSION The nurses demonstrate poor knowledge regarding post-operative care of patients with kidney transplantation. Education and experience play an essential role in enhancing the education of nursing staff working in kidney transplantation units. Formal training needs to be imparted to provide quality care to renal transplantation patients.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: Communicable respiratory illness is an important cause of morbidity among nurses. One of the key reasons for occupational transmission of this illness is the failure to implement appropriate barrier precautions, particularly facial protection and other personnel protective equipment. This study is to see the magnitude, implications and significance of assessment, comparison of knowledge, attitude and practice regarding the use of personal protective equipment of critical care unite among nurses and to assess their learning need. Methodology: Quantitative descriptive cross sectional study design was used in this study. Total of 123 critical care unite nurses participated in this study. Likert scale was used to assess the knowledge attitude and practice of critical care unite nurse. The questionnaire consists of 27 items regarding the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). There are 3 subscales namely, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice. Results: The findings showed that almost 93.5% nurses have good knowledge about PPE while 6.5% have poor, whereas 95% of participants show positive response regarding the use of PPE at work place while 5% have showed negative attitude toward the use of PPE. Finally regarding practices total of 40% have good practice, 50% have average and remaining 10% percent have poor practice of using PPE.  Conclusion: The use of personal protective equipment reduces the hospital acquire infection and it reduce overall mortality rate as well as it reduce hospital stay of patients. In this study we have found that critical care unite nurse have positive attitude towards the usage of personal protective equipment and nurses have showed satisfactory level attitude regarding the use of personal protective equipment. Keywords: personal protective equipment, Nurse, knowledge, attitude and practice.