Date Created
8-2026
Document Type
Capstone
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science
Department
College of Natural and Health Sciences, Nursing, Nursing Student Work
First Advisor
Mitzie Meyers
Abstract
A basic patient right is to have pain adequately managed. However, research consistently indicates that many adult patients in acute care experience inadequately managed pain, which may contribute to adverse patient outcomes. Studies have shown that nonpharmacological pain management can lead to increased patient satisfaction, shorter hospital stays, and better patient outcomes. However, many barriers exist to nurses providing effective nonpharmacological pain control therapy, primarily including heavy workload and a lack of education and support. Currently, there is insufficient research on how to overcome these barriers. Four nurse managers with experience in nursing leadership were interviewed using a qualitative descriptive design. Participants were recruited using purposive convenience and snowball sampling. Data analysis was an immersive, inductive, iterative, comparative process that elicited meaning from the data. Five themes emerged from the data: current practices, barriers, education and belief change, leadership and system support, and practical implementation strategies. Findings emphasized education, leadership support, cultural change, standardized comfort tools, delegation, interdisciplinary ownership, documentation visibility, and empathy fatigue.
Abstract Format
html
Keywords
nonpharmacological pain management; nurse managers; nurse leaders; nurse leadership; nursing culture; multimodal pain management; holistic pain management; holistic nursing; acute care; adult acute care; qualitative research; complementary and alternative medicine
Subject Categories
Alternative and Complementary Medicine | Critical Care Nursing | Nursing Administration | Other Nursing
Language
English
Extent
68 pages
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by the author.
Digital Origin
Born digital
Recommended Citation
Bonnell, Landen M., "Nurse Manager Perceptions of Strategies to Overcome the Underutilization of Nonpharmacological Pain Control Methods in Adult Acute Care" (2026). Undergraduate Honors Theses. 140.
https://digscholarship.unco.edu/honors/140
Included in
Alternative and Complementary Medicine Commons, Critical Care Nursing Commons, Nursing Administration Commons, Other Nursing Commons