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Background and purpose: During trainings for operating room technician a student is familiarized with innovative technologies in different surgical procedures and would learn how to care and manage patients before, during and after a surgery. This study aimed at analyzing the performance of operating room technicians (who earned a bachelor degree) according to their college curriculum.

Materials and methods: This qualitative study used a content analysis approach in which semi-structured interviews were conducted among operating room technicians. Participants were purposefully selected and interviews lasted for 6 months until data saturation. Data (from 10 interviews) was analyzed using conventional qualitative content analysis.

Results: Qualitative content analysis of data resulted in six themes reflecting the analysis of operating room technicians’ about their performance based on their college curriculum. The themes included ineffective teaching, credentialism, performance-based experience, the crisis of ignoring the staff dignity, learning motivation, and concerns over ignoring main modules.

Conclusion: The main concern of the participants was inefficiency of teaching in undergraduate educational programs since the courses in this period are not practical. Also, common training programs in this field do not increase the students’ knowledge and skills to ideal level. Therefore, appropriate planning is recommended to provide more practical trainings.

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 Background and purpose: Obesity as a risk factor puts patients at risk for postoperative complications. Shoulder pain is one of the early post-laparoscopic cholecystectomy symptoms related to CO2, which remains in the abdomen. Motivational spirometry is a novel technique used in management of shoulder pain after LC. This research aimed to evaluate the effect of motivational spirometry on severity of shoulder pain after LC considering body mass index (BMI).
Materials and methods: A randomized clinical trial was performed in 84 patients who were candidate for LC. They were randomly divided into a control group and an intervention group. Demographic characteristics and body mass index were recorded. Patients in intervention group used motivational spirometry (10 deep breaths in sitting or semi-sitting positions) in full consciousness every 2 hr after surgery. In both groups, intensity of shoulder pain was measured at 4, 8, 12, 24, and 48 hours after surgery using Numerical Rating Scale (NRS).
Results: Among the intervention group, 28.9% had a BMI higher than 25. Kruskal-Wallis test showed significant differences in pain intensity between patient in the intervention group with different BMI at 4, 8, 12, and 24 hours after surgery (P<0.05).
Conclusion: In this study, motivational spirometry reduced intensity of shoulder pain in patients following LC, however, some patients with high BMI had more sever and long-lasting pain, because obesity impede proper deep and effective inhalation and exhalation in these patients.
 
(Clinical Trials Registry Number: IRCT20181106041569N1)