Beliefs about medicines among prescribing and non-prescribing nurses in Sweden

Abstract

Background: The beliefs patients and health care providers have about medicines are important for communication about medicines, which is a central tool for patient-centered care and the quality of care. This study aimed to analyze general beliefs about medicines among prescribing and non-prescribing nurses.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study a survey (Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire, socio-demographic factors, years of professional experience and the right to prescribe) was sent to 303 nurses in  Region Västra Götaland, Sweden, in 2007 (response rate: 80.5%). Analyses were made with independent t-tests, analyses of variance and linear regressions.

Results: The beliefs about medicines among nurse prescribers did not differ from those of non-prescribing nurses. Professional experience was, however, important for harmful beliefs about medicines. Non-prescribing nurses with 16-30 years of professional experience had more harmful beliefs about medicines compared with non-prescribing nurses with less professional experience.

Conclusions: It is important to further examine the possible effects of education and professional experience on beliefs among nurses. During the communication between nurses and patients there is a need for increased awareness of the importance of professional experience for beliefs about medicines.