“Are nurses ready for dementia care? Insights into knowledge, attitudes, and practice”
Suchismita Pahantasingh, Sasmita Das, Surjeet SahooBACKGROUND:
Dementia is a severe global health issue closely related to population aging. Nurses are mainly responsible for dementia care, but gaps in knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) can affect the quality of care. This study conducted to dementia-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices among student nurses and staff nurses, and identified demographic and professional factors associated with these competencies.
MATERIALS AND METHODS:
A hospital-based cross-sectional comparative study was adopted with total enumerative sampling technique among 350 participants (150 student nurses and 200 staff nurses) at Sum Nursing College and IMS and SUM Hospital Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Data were collected using a Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale (DKAS), the Attitudes toward Alzheimer’s disease and Related Dementias Scale, and Self-reported Dementia Care Practice scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
RESULTS:
The mean knowledge score ranged from 9.18 ± 3.35 to 10.22 ± 2.99. Attitude scores ranged from 74.92 ± 14.70 to 86.36 ± 15.37. Practice scores were between 35.60 ± 7.70 and 39.30 ± 6.40. Knowledge strongly correlated with attitude (r = 0.41,
CONCLUSION:
Nurses’ dementia care competencies were moderate and influenced by their experience and training. Further research is needed to determine whether targeted educational and training interventions can lead to meaningful improvements in dementia care.