'I think PCA is great, but . . .'-surgical nurses' perceptions of patient-controlled analgesia

This qualitative study investigated surgical nurses' perceptions of patient-controlled analgesia as a strategy for managing acute pain in a tertiary care hospital. Patient-controlled analgesia is commonly used and nurses play an essential role in caring for patients prescribed it. The study was divided into two parts. First, audiotaped semistructured interviews were conducted with 10 nurses. The interviews were followed by a postal questionnaire to 336 nurses with 171 returned. Thematic analysis was the chosen methodology. The audiotaped transcripts and questionnaires surfaced five themes, with the dominant one being 'I think PCA is great, but . . .'. The paper outlines and explores these themes and addresses the implications arising from the research for both clinical practice and education. © 2007 Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.