Introduction. Gallbladder disease is a condition involving the accumulation of bile deposits in the gallbladder consisting of chemical compounds normally dissolved in bile and eliminated to the gastrointestinal tract. A high standard of nursing care is a significant factor in patient recovery, especially that laparoscopy, though less invasive than the traditional open surgery, nevertheless carries the risk of complications. Close monitoring of patients and proper performance of nursing procedures contribute to faster recuperation of hospitalized patients. Aim. The aim of the project was to evaluate the knowledge of nurses regarding proper care for patients who undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy and complications of the procedure. Work seniority was compared with the rates of correct answers. Material and methods. The study was conducted using a diagnostic survey, using a questionnaire as the research instrument. The questionnaire consisted of 11 multiple choice questions. Participants were 45 nurses from three departments of the following hospitals: Regional Specialist Hospital in Siedlce and the Witold Orłowski Independent Public Teaching Hospital in Warsaw. Results. The fewest correct answers were given by the nurses working at the Department of General and Vascular Surgery in Siedlce. The nurses from the Department of Clinical Nutrition and Surgery and the Department of Clinical General and Gastrointestinal Surgery in Warsaw had the same number of correct answers in the questionnaire. Conclusions. The nurses demonstrated a sufficiently high level of knowledge. A correlation was found between work seniority and the number of correct answers.

Key words: gallbladder disease, nursing care, laparoscopic cholecystectomy.