Teaching the procedure of clean intermittent catheterisation

The procedure of clean intermittent catheterisation (CIC) by 40 carers (23 males and 17 females) for spinal cord injury patients was evaluated (Assessment 1), and was subdivided into 40 steps with one point allotted for each step for evaluation purposes. Those who scored more than 32 out of 40 were excluded from the study. The carers who were enrolled in the study were taught the steps of CIC by personal teaching sessions. Assessment 2 was performed on the third day, and the steps which were unsatisfactory were explained to the carer, with positive feedback. Assessment 3 was carried out after 3 days. In Assessment 1, the mean score was 2, and after the first individualised teaching session, the score in Assessment 2 was 25 (p < 0.01); subsequent to the second teaching session, it further improved to 32 (p < 0.01) in Assessment 3. The relationship of carer to patient (son, daughter, wife, brother etc), age, and sex of the carer vs sex of the patient did not have any influence on the performance of CIC. However, the literacy status of the carer did have a bearing on the performance. The performance of graduates/postgraduates after a second teaching session was 37, whereas the performance of illiterate carers was only 27. The monthly income, habitat (rural vs urban) and occupation of the carers had a bearing on the performance; however, this was related to their literacy status. It is thus concluded that, with individualised teaching sessions and positive feedback, carers who are not literate (a situation frequently existing in developing nations) can be taught to perform satisfactorily the procedure of CIC.