Nursing Students' Behavioral Intentions Toward Medication Safety: A Cross‐Sectional Study Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior

Medication administration errors pose a significant risk to patient safety and the quality of healthcare. Measuring the involvement of nursing students in incidents during supervised clinical placements can be challenging. We aimed to evaluate nursing students' behavioral intentions to enhance medication safety using the Spanish version of the Theory of Planned Behavior-Medication Safety Questionnaire (TPB-MSQ-S). A cross-sectional design was utilized, involving 498 nursing students from the Basque Country. The TPB-MSQ-S demonstrated robust psychometric properties (content validity index = 0.91, Cronbach's α = 0.77). The TPB constructs correlated positively with students' decision to report errors (attitude r = 0.38, subjective norms r = 0.18, perceived behavioral control r = 0.17). Age was also significantly correlated with all three constructs. Multiple regression analysis showed that attitude significantly predicted behavioral intention (β = 0.39, p < 0.001), and the model explained 14.1% of the variance (p < 0.001). TPB-MSQ-S is a valid tool for assessing nursing students' intentions regarding medication-safety. Attitude significantly influences their willingness to report medication errors. Improving education on medication safety before professional practice could lead to safer nursing practices.