Nursing Difficulties and Issues in Endoscopic Sedation: Qualitative Research in Japan

Gastrointestinal endoscopic treatments have increased in Japan. Respiratory depression is as an unexpected development during sedation. This study aimed to clarify the sedation-related difficulties encountered by nurses involved in endoscopic treatment. Participants were five nurses who had worked for more than a year in the endoscopy department of a gastrointestinal endoscopy specialist guidance facility in Sapporo. Semistructured interviews were conducted. The number of recording units obtained was 129, which were divided into 12 categories and subdivided into 42 subcategories. The nursing practice difficulties related to sedation in endoscopic treatment were classified into two major categories: “difficulties in nursing practice” and “system difficulties.” All of the “difficulty in nursing practice” items were role-fulfilling difficulties involved in protecting patient safety and reducing anxiety and discomfort. Four of these items reflected difficulties related particularly to the role of the nurse in charge of the sedated patient in the endoscopy room. To reduce the difficulties encountered by nurses, a treatment environment system must be devised to ensure patient safety and improve the education support system for nurses with regard to sedation.