Impact of empowerment for pediatric nursing students on their knowledge about climate change and its impact on children health

Abstract

Background Ensuring the safe management of global climate change is a crucial objective of sustainable development in 2030. In this endeavor, the medical team’s role is as significant as that of climate scientists. This is due to climate change’s adverse impact on the health of individuals, children, and society. Numerous diseases, including skin disorders, respiratory issues, and gastrointestinal illnesses, are closely linked to climate change. Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of empowerment for pediatric nursing students on their knowledge about climate change and its effect on children’s health. Research design The pre–posttest quasi-experimental research design was used to fulfill the aim of the current study. Setting The study was conducted at the Faculty of Nursing, Cairo University. Sample A convenience sample of 200 pediatric nursing students. Tools Two were used for data collection: (a) a structured interviewing questionnaire schedule and (b) a knowledge assessment (pre–posttest). Results The mean satisfactory knowledge score after the empowerment was 67.3±3.2 and there was statistically significant differences between students’ knowledge about climate change’s effects on child’s health before and after empowerment (P≤0.05). Conclusion After the implementation of empowerment for pediatric nursing students, there was a significant improvement in the level of knowledge among them regarding climate change and its effect on children’s health. Recommendation Raising the awareness of students about climate change and its effect on all over child’s body system function so, it is urgent to add knowledge about climate change and its impact on child’s health in the pediatric nursing education curriculum.