Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Nurses Regarding Nosocomial Infection Control: A KAP Study in Iran

Abstract

Background: Healthcare-associated infections pose major challenges to health systems worldwide and threaten patients and staff. Nurses play a key role in their prevention and control. Objectives: This study investigated nurses’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding nosocomial infection control in Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 430 nurses selected by systematic random sampling from three tertiary teaching hospitals in Qazvin, Iran, in 2024. The inclusion criteria were ≥ 3 months of nursing experience, a bachelor’s degree, and willingness to participate. Data were collected using a demographic checklist and a self-administered KAP questionnaire and analyzed in SPSS using descriptive statistics and linear regression. Results: Most nurses were female (70.5%) and married (60.7%). Moderate knowledge, positive attitudes, and good self-reported practice were reported among 67.4%, 49.5%, and 86.3% of nurses, respectively. Univariate regression showed significantly lower KAP scores in male nurses than in female nurses (knowledge: β = -0.27; attitude: β = -0.25; practice: β = -0.41). Married nurses had higher knowledge scores than single nurses (β = 0.27), and nurses working rotating shifts scored higher than those working fixed shifts (β = 0.39). Nurses with 16 - 20 years of experience had higher knowledge scores than those with < 1 year of experience. Multiple regression confirmed sex-related differences and the associations between shift type and work experience and knowledge. Conclusions: Most nurses had moderate knowledge, nearly half had positive attitudes, and most reported good practices. Managers should prioritize improving knowledge and fostering positive attitudes among nurses with neutral attitudes, along with direct observational monitoring, to support effective infection control.