Knowledge and attitude of nurses about newborn hearing screening in Nepal

• DOI: 10.1016/j.jnn.2021.11.003
• Publication Date: 2021-11-26T19:09:48Z
• Authors: Aashish Sharma; Prabuddha Bhatarai; Surakshya Kunwar; Prashanth Prabhu
• Keywords: 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; 3. Good health

Abstract Most hearing impairments can be identified during Newborn hearing screening (NBHS). A successful NBHS warrants the participation and support of professionals from multiple disciplines. Nurses can be a key member of this team. They can provide information and procedures to help parents perform the NBHS. Also, the nurses may advocate for disability screening in a newborn or paediatric context too. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was done to analyse nurses' knowledge and attitudes on infant hearing loss and Newborn hearing screening in various hospital settings in Nepal. We observed lack of awareness and information about NBHS in nurses, despite knowing it is vital for the child. Since, nurses are key members of medical team, they can help identify high risk babies needing audiological assistance. The lack of knowledge evident in the study should be curtailed so that newborn are referred at their earliest for hearing assessment.