An exploration of Maltese nurses' perception of complementary therapies

Abstract

Literature suggests that there is growing evidence supporting the claim that complementary therapies play an increasingly prominent role in healthcare. The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of Maltese nurses regarding the effectiveness and safety, as well as their recommendations for and personal use of complementary therapies. The study also explored the nurses' interest in acquiring additional knowledge in this field and whether they believed that complementary therapies can be practised alongside conventional means of care. A convenience sample of 22 nurses working with terminally ill patients was surveyed through a self-administered questionnaire in a cross-sectional study. Analysis revealed that more than half of the respondents perceived seven therapies as having conclusive evidence or widespread evidence for their effectiveness: massage, meditation, music, acupuncture, humour, pastoral/spiritual counselling, and yoga. Approximately the same amount of nurses perceived humour, music, massage, meditation, pastoral/spiritual counselling, relaxation/visualisation, yoga, and aromatherapy as definitely safe. Additionally, the nurses were most likely to recommend therapies which they personally used such as massage, music, humour and aromatherapy. The majority of nurses perceived their professional preparation in this area to be fair or poor and expressed an interest in gaining additional training in the use of such therapies. Therefore, educational programmes need to be developed to enhance Maltese nurses' knowledge on the subject, so that complementary therapies may one day be practised alongside conventional means of care.