Abstract
M.Cur. (Intensive General Nursing)
From the professional ethical perspective the professional nurse is responsible for the
treatment and nursing of a patient in acute pain by effectively handling pain in the first 48
hours post-operative following serious surgery. The professional nurse can treat patients
optimally only if she has the necessary knowledge and skills with regard to the different
methods of handling pain.
By making effective handling of pain available to the patient, including the advantages and
disadvantages, the professional nurse contributes to maintaining, promoting and restoring
health. In this way she facilitates the patient in reaching his objective of obtaining wholeness
and she obtains her objective of quality nursing.
The aim of this study is to determine which method of handling pain, namely the intermittent
bolus dose analgesics and patient controlled analgesics, offers the most advantages to the
patient and the professional nurse.
A quantitative, contextually descriptive research design was followed in which a survey
method and a retrospective analysis of nursing and medical records were completed in order
to determine the total amount of analgesic used and to investigate the haemodynamic stability
while using analgesics. An analysis was done of the information collected by means of a structured pain control list.
Results indicate that those patients using patient controlled analgesics use larger doses of
analgesics and are haemodynamically more stable while using analgesics than those patients
using the method of intermittent bolus dose analgesics.
Following on the conclusion, nursing guidelines were established for nursing practice and
recommendations were made for nursing practice, nursing education and further research.