A Comparative Study of Emergency Nurses and Prehospital Emergency Personnel Competence in Electrocardiographic Interpretation in hospitals and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Centers of Tabriz

Abstract

Abstract Introduction: Emergency nurses and emergency medical service (EMS) personnel are expected to be competent to interpret electrocardiogram (ECG). This study was carried out aiming at comparing electrocardiogram interpretation competency among emergency nurses and EMS personnel. Methods: This comparative descriptive study was conducted with the participation of 170 participats including 105 emergency nurses and 65 EMS personnel in Tabriz, northwest Iran. Data were collected During September and October 2018 using electrocardiogram interpretation competency questionnaire through randomized method. Afterwards, the data were analyzed using SPSS V.24 through independent t test, Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficient. Results: Totally, 170 emergency nurses of 5 hospitals and EMS personnel of 20 centers were invited to participate in this study. The study results showed that mean of emergency nurses' electrocardiogram interpretation competency (6.65±2.16) was significantly higher than that of EMS personnel (4.87±1.81) (p001/0>). Additionally, 38.1% of the emergency nurses and 4.6% of the pre-hospital emergency personnel were competent in ECG interpretation and 61.9% of the emergency nurses and 95.4% of the pre-hospital emergency personnel were not qualified in ECG interpretation. Conclusion: According to our study findings, low competency of emergency nurses and EMS personnel was noticeable. Regarding the fact that emergency nurses and pre-hospital emergency personnel have a great responsibility for timely and accurate diagnosis of heart diseases, effective steps should be taken to enable them to interpret electrocardiogram. To this end, it seems necessary to hold the standard educational courses relating to electrocardiogram interpretation and provide necessary qualifications prior to employing the staff.