Assessment of Knowledge and Practices of Undergraduate Nursing Students Regarding Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infections

Background: Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) refer to infections that occur within the urinary system due to the presence of beneficial bacteria that reside in the genitourinary region. These infections can be diagnosed through laboratory analysis of urine samples and the identification of symptoms such as lower abdominal pain, malodorous urine, and unexplained fever. Objective: The objective of this study was to identify the knowledge and practices of undergraduate nursing students regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among nursing students regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections. Simple random sampling technique was used for data collection. Data was collected from a sample size of 64 participants by using pre-structured demographics, knowledge and practice based questionnaire from nursing students. Data was analyzed by using the SPSS 21 software for descriptive statistics. Results: The findings of this study revealed that majority of the participants 62.5% had excellent knowledge regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections while 32.8% participants had average knowledge regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections and 4.7% participants had poor knowledge. Similarly, 48.4% participants had average practice regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections and 35.9% participants had good practice while only 15.6% had poor practice regarding catheter associated urinary tract infections. Conclusion: The findings of this research indicate that nursing students enrolled in tertiary care hospitals possess a moderate degree of expertise and practical experience. Nevertheless, the results indicate that further efforts are required to guarantee that pupils have a comprehensive understanding of hospital-acquired infections and rigorously observe the prescribed precautions in order to mitigate catheter-associated infections in hospital environments.