Items Strongly disagree n(%) Disagree n(%) No comment n(%) Agree n(%) Strongly agree n(%)
1. If the patient can be distracted from his pain this usually means that he does not have high pain intensity. 3(3.7) 25(30.5) 5(6.1) 42(51.2) 7(8.5)
2. Respiratory distress is rarely occurs in patients who have been receiving opoids over a period of months. 1(1.2) 26(31.7) 25(30.5) 27(32.9) 3(3.7)
3. Patients with a history of substance abuse should not be given opoids for pain because they are at high risk for repeated addiction. 2(2.4) 10(12.2) 14(17.1) 43(52.4) 13(15.9)
4. Elderly patients cannot tolerate opoids for pain relief. 6(7.3) 35(42.7) 16(19.5) 24(29.3) 1(1.2)
5. The patient with pain should be encouraged to indure as much pain as possible before resorting to a pain relief measure. 5(6.1) 26(31.7) 6(7.3) 41(50) 4(4.9)
6. Children less than 11 years cannot report pain with reliability, and therefore the nurse should rely on the parents’ assessment of the child’s pain intensity. 3(3.7) 23(28) 12(14.6) 44(53.7) 0
7. Giving patients sterile water by injection (placebo) is often a useful test to determine if the pain is real. 7(8.5) 16(19.5) 6(7.3) 26(31.7) 27(32.9)
8. The first assessor of pain should be the patient him/herself. 8(9.8) 26(31.7) 22(26.8) 11(13.4) 15(18.3)
9. Opoids used in cancer pain management do result in addiction. 3(3.7) 17(20.7) 15(18.3) 25(30.5) 22(26.8)
Table 2: Attitude of nurses regarding cancer pain management at selected public and private health institutions in Addis Ababa city, Ethiopia, 2013.