Effect of Group Discussion on the Attitude of Healthcare Workers Toward the Patients' Rights: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Objective: Group discussion can enhance the knowledge and capabilities of the nurses in clinical judgments, however, its impact on the attitude toward respecting the patients' rights by nurses has been less focused. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of group discussion on nurses' attitude toward respecting the rights of patients in Shahid Madani hospital, Tabriz in 2014. Materials and Methods: This experimental study with a pretest and posttest design and a control group was conducted on nurses. The research sample consisted of 142 working nurses who had a negative attitude score of less than 88 toward patients' rights. They were selected through the random sampling method and were assigned to 2 groups of experimental and control. A 2-partite questionnaire was used to collect data which included demographic data and observance of physical, psychological, and social rights of patients. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Results: According to the results, no significant demographic difference existed between the 2 groups (P > 0.05). However, the analysis of covariance showed a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups in the score which was significantly higher in the intervention group compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The results showed that group discussion can enhance observance of patients' rights by nurses. Therefore, it is recommended to use group discussion as an appropriate method in hospitals in order to change the attitude of nurses and to increase attention to patients' rights.