Nurses’ motivation, attitudes and knowledge in wound care: a cross-sectional study

Aim. Chronic/hard-to-heal/non-healing wounds are a worldwide problem that requires educated, motivated nurses with a positive attitude towards wound management. The aim was to assess the motivation, attitudes and knowledge of nurses treating patients with chronic wounds during their daily practice prior to completing the newly introduced certifi cation program. Material and methods. An exploratory cross-sectional study. Ninety-four randomly selected nurses who work with patients with wounds on a daily basis participated in this study. The instrument constructed by authors was distributed from February to March 2022. Results. The overall motivation reached 73%, attitude 53% and knowledge 54%. There was a signifi cant diff erence found in motivation between departments/settings (P = 0.036) with the highest level achieved by home care nurses, a positive correlation between knowledge and level of education (P = 0.042), and positive attitudes in the group of nurses with specialization (P = 0.021). Nurses are interested in further education, but they lack competences. Conclusions. The results are linked to the previous absence of structured nursing education in wound management. Eff ective management of patients with chronic wounds is complex and requires appropriate knowledge, attitudes and motivation towards wound care. It is expected that nurses’ will and new certifi cation will lead to positive overall outcomes. Key words: knowledge, attitude, clinical competence, wound care, motivation