Knowledge, Behavior and Attitude of Nurses Regarding Prevention of Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infections

Abstract

The level of knowledge of nursing staff handling patients with Central Venous Catheters has been reported internationally as one of the factors contributing to the increasing incidence of Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infections (Alkubati et al., 2015; Chen et al., 2015). This study aimed to identify the Level of knowledge, behavior, and attitude of nurses in Adult and Hemodialysis Units in a military hospital in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia regarding Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infections prevention, and whether these variables differ between those critical and non-critical care units. This research adopted a quantitative descriptive cross-sectional and comparative design. Data collection was performed in July 2018 with a response rate of 81%. Total sampling included 121 participants using a self-administered questionnaire consisted of 20 items of yes-no and liker-type questions developed by a similar previous study. The results showed that participants had an adequate level of knowledge and behavior regarding the evidence-based guidelines of Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infections prevention. The participants’ level of knowledge was significantly associated with their years of experience. The participants had highly positive attitudes regarding the utilization of CLABSI prevention evidence-based guidelines. Participants from critical care unit had higher level of knowledge and behavior regarding the evidence-based guidelines of Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infections prevention, while participants from non-critical care unit had higher positive attitude toward the utility of the guidelines. The results were still showing a room of improvement that could be achieved by regular education and training.