Psychometric study of the Nursing Care Scale for Pain Management

Abstract

Background: Pain is inefficiently managed by nurses in part due to the lack of tools capable of measuring and monitoring such practice. Objective: To assess the psychometric properties of the Nursing Care Scale for Pain Management. Methodology: This descriptive correlational study assessed internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and confirmatory factor analysis using the covariance matrix-maximum likelihood algorithm. Results: The study involved 260 nurses with a mean age of 35.42 years, 78.5% of whom were women. After the refinement of the scale, the overall internal consistency was α = 0.95, and the score by factors was: initial assessment α = 0.85; Planning α = 0.76; Implementation of non-pharmacological interventions α = 0.80; Educating the person with pain α = 0.89; Registration α = 0.76; Reassessment α = 0.81, and Implementation of pharmacological interventions α = 0.70. The highest mean values of the overall scores are related to pharmacological interventions (3.13 ± 0.60). Conclusion: The scale is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the pain management practices of Portuguese nurses. Most nurses apply pharmacological interventions to manage the pain endured by patients.