Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Pain Management Among Nurses in Oman

Pain is one of the major stressors in hospitalized patients. Despite increased awareness and advancements in medicine, technology, and knowledge, many patients continue to suffer from unbearable pain, affecting their physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Nurses play a crucial role in pain management decisions. Limited knowledge and negative attitudes toward pain management were reported as one of the major obstacles to implementing effective pain management among nurses.

To investigate the knowledge and attitudes toward pain management among nurses working in a secondary care hospital in Oman and their association with demographic factors.

This descriptive cross-sectional study used the Knowledge and Attitudes Survey Regarding Pain (KASRP). It recruited a random sample of 191 registered nurses from a total eligible population of 375 at Sur Hospital, Oman. A total of 162 valid responses were obtained, yielding an 84.8% response rate. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics (version 29.0).

Among participants, the median KASRP score was 48.78% (interquartile range: 41.46%-60.98%), well below the 80% competency benchmark, indicating inadequate knowledge and attitudes toward pain management. Based on KASRP score categories for poor (<50%), moderate (50%-80%), and good (>80%) performance, 89.5% of the sample (n = 145) fell into the poor to moderate ranges, while only 10.5% (n = 17) demonstrated good competency. Significantly higher KASRP scores were observed among nurses aged 30-40 years (p = .018) and non-Omani nurses (p = .038). In contrast, no statistically significant associations were observed for sex, level of education, years of experience, area of practice, or prior pain management training (p > .05).

The findings revealed significant gaps in knowledge and attitudes toward pain assessment and management among nurses at Sur Hospital. They highlight the need for more effective, structured pain management training programs and for integrating comprehensive pain management content into undergraduate nursing curricula. Future randomized controlled trials are needed to assess the impact of structured pain training on nurses' knowledge and attitudes and to close gaps in nursing competency across healthcare settings.