Insertion of urethraI catheter: medical doctor staff competence at Hamad General Hospital Emergency Department

ABSTRACT

To asses the level of competence at uretheral catheterization among medical staff at the Emergency Department in Hamad General Hospital, a test of urethral catheterization procedure was given to 158 emergency medical staff doctors of different specialties, on a manikin model. The test explored different aspects of the procedure. The results showed that 32% of medical staff were successful in excluding any contraindications before starting the procedure; 71% asked to obtain consent; 89% used aseptic precautions in the technique correctly; 94% carried out the different steps of the procedure technique properly; 53% used the proper size of catheter; and 32% fixed the catheter to the body. Although the majority of the medical staff could perform the main steps of the procedure well, there was a great ignorance about other aspects, such as excluding contraindications, selection of the proper size of the catheter, and catheter fixation. In addition, there was inconsistency between the staff in obtaining informed consent. This concludes that the medical staff had minimal exposure to urethral catheterization procedure, and limited self-perceived confidence and experience in this procedure, despite working in a major emergency department