Neurosurgical operating room nurses exhibit a positive attitude toward VTE prevention but face significant knowledge, practical, and systemic barriers that hinder effective intraoperative implementation.
Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) prevention is essential for patient safety during neurosurgery, with operating room nurses playing a key role in its implementation. However, a discrepancy exists between nurses’ recognition of the importance of VTE and their practical ability to implement preventive measures effectively. This study examined neurosurgical operating room nurses’ perceptions, preventive practices, and implementation challenges related to intraoperative VTE prevention. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted in two tertiary general hospitals in China between June and September 2025. Data were analyzed using a descriptive qualitative approach with content analysis guided by the Graneheim and Lundman framework, including repeated reading of transcripts, initial coding, categorization, theme development, and validation. A total of 20 neurosurgical operating room nurses who met the eligibility criteria participated in the study. The analysis identified four main themes: (1) a positive attitude toward VTE prevention; (2) limited understanding of VTE; (3) deficient practical competency in VTE prevention; and (4) multiple challenges in implementing VTE preventive care. While these findings reveal a consistent willingness among nurses to engage in prevention, they also highlight significant knowledge, practical ability, and systemic support gaps that hinder effective implementation. This highlights the need for structured education and competency training, as well as optimized clinical protocols, to translate positive attitudes into reliable practice and enhance patient safety in neurosurgical settings. In this study, neurosurgical operating room nurses exhibited limited VTE expertise and faced challenges in preventive care. The findings underscore the need for enhanced training, stronger accountability, the development of a specialty-specific intraoperative risk assessment tool, and improved interdisciplinary collaboration to effectively reduce the incidence of VTE. Not applicable.
Wang et al. (Wed,) studied this question.