Impact of Perioperative Nursing Assessment Round on Anxiety and Complications of Elective Surgeries: A Quasi-Experimental Study at a Teaching Hospital in Nigeria
Abstract
This quasi-experimental study examined the impact of perioperative nursing assessment rounds on anxiety and postoperative outcomes among adults undergoing elective surgery at Kwara State University Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria.
A surgical patient is a person who receives medical treatment involving operative procedures to treat, diagnose or manage a condition. Anxiety is an important concern for patients preparing for elective surgery and may influence their perioperative experience and recovery.
The study examined the impact of perioperative nursing assessment rounds on anxiety levels and postoperative outcomes among patients undergoing elective surgeries at Kwara State University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria. It assessed preoperative anxiety, postoperative anxiety and postoperative complications in treatment and control groups.
A quasi-experimental design was adopted involving 92 adult patients scheduled for elective surgery, equally divided between treatment and control groups. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire assessing demographic characteristics, anxiety, pain experience and satisfaction with preoperative education. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used at a significance level of p < 0.05.
Most participants were female, and 63% reported high preoperative anxiety. Anxiety in the treatment group decreased from 4.28 to 3.54 (p < 0.001). The treatment group also had significantly lower postoperative anxiety than the control group, with a mean difference of 1.09 (p < 0.05). Pain declined over the postoperative period, and lower later pain levels were associated with greater satisfaction with preoperative education.
The study concluded that perioperative nursing assessment rounds reduced anxiety and supported postoperative recovery, highlighting the importance of nurse-led patient education and anxiety-management strategies within perioperative care.
Adult patients undergoing elective surgery.
Participants allocated to the intervention group.
Participants allocated to the control group.
Pretest-posttest, non-randomized control-group approach.
>63% Highly Anxious
More than 63% of participants reported being either very or extremely anxious before surgery, demonstrating a substantial preoperative anxiety burden.
4.28 → 3.54
The treatment group demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in anxiety from 4.28 before the intervention to 3.54 afterwards (p < 0.001).
Mean Difference = 1.09
Postoperative anxiety was lower in the treatment group than in the control group, with a reported mean difference of 1.09 and statistical significance at p < 0.05.
93.3%
On postoperative Day 1, 93.3% of patients reported moderate-to-severe pain, while only a small proportion reported mild or no pain.
Severe Pain: 4.3%
By Days 6–8, severe pain had declined markedly to 4.3%. Mild and moderate pain accounted for most reported pain levels during this period.
25% Pain-Free
By Days 12–15, 25% of patients reported no pain and 47.8% reported only mild pain. No patients were reported as experiencing severe pain at this stage.
Associated With Lower Later Pain
The study reported significant associations between preoperative education and lower pain levels at Days 6–8 and Days 12–15.
Structured Assessment Round
The intervention group underwent a standardized perioperative nursing evaluation round one day before surgery in addition to routine preoperative and postoperative care.
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Quasi-Experimental Study
The study used a pretest-posttest, non-randomized control-group quasi-experimental approach to compare patients who underwent perioperative nursing assessment rounds with patients who did not receive the intervention.
Kwara State University Teaching Hospital
The study was conducted at Kwara State University Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria, previously known as General Hospital Ilorin.
Elective Surgical Patients
The target population comprised patients presenting to the surgical department of Kwara State University Teaching Hospital for elective surgical care.
92 Participants
The sample size was determined using the simplified Yamane formula. Ninety-two participants were included and divided into two groups of 46 participants each.
Convenience Sampling
Convenience sampling was used to recruit eligible participants according to their availability, eligibility, consent and scheduled surgical procedures during the study period.
Four Clinical Areas
Participants were recruited from general surgery, orthopaedic surgery, plastic surgery, and obstetrics and gynaecology according to the hospital’s operative schedules.
Perioperative Nursing Assessment Round
Patients in the intervention group underwent a standardized perioperative nursing evaluation round conducted by the researcher and an assistant researcher one day before surgery, in addition to routine care.
Structured Patient Education
The educational intervention included information about the proposed surgical procedure, treatment alternatives, and what patients should expect during the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative phases.
Comprehensive Perioperative Assessment
The article describes assessment rounds as incorporating physical assessment, psychosocial assessment, functional assessment, preoperative teaching and identification of potential surgical and anaesthetic risks.
Structured Questionnaire
A structured questionnaire was used to assess demographic characteristics, anxiety levels, postoperative pain, preoperative education and other study outcomes. The instrument underwent face and content validation.
Sobi Specialist Hospital
A pilot study was conducted among 12 general-surgery patients at Sobi Specialist Hospital in Ilorin to evaluate the data-collection procedures, identify unclear questions and estimate questionnaire completion time.
SPSS Analysis
The published abstract states that the data were analysed using SPSS version 27. The detailed Method of Data Analysis section of the published PDF states SPSS version 25.0. Descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, logistic regression and correlation analysis are described in the full methods.
Institutional Ethical Review
The article reports ethical approval through the
University of Ilorin and Kwara State University Teaching
Hospital processes.
UERC/ASN/2025/3252
KWASUTH/IRC/246/VOL.II/57
Confidentiality & Voluntary Participation
Participant names were not recorded, study data were assigned identification codes, participation was voluntary, and participants were free to withdraw. The article reports that signed agreement was obtained following verbal explanation of the study.
Equal Contributions
The published article records equal contributions among the authors.
Conflict of Interest & Funding
Conflict of Interest:
No conflict of interest.
Funding:
No funding received by the authors.
Editorial Timeline
CC BY 4.0
This article is published by The Operating Room Global
Journal under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International licence.
DOI: 10.64573/torgj2602003
Volume 2 · Issue 1 · 2026
The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ).
ISSN 3105-3262.
Original Research.
Article DOI: 10.64573/torgj2602003.
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