Assessment of Knowledge Regarding Prevention of Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infection Among Nurses

Background: This research was carried out to assess the knowledge of nurses on the prevention of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI). The cross-sectional research design was descriptive in nature and was aimed at assessing the knowledge level of the nurses working at Jinnah Hospital Lahore. The survey questionnaire was an adopted, modified, and translated 15-item questionnaire, used to gather data on 114 nurses. Materials and methods: The study population included nurses who had at least two years of experience and who were willing to participate. The majority of respondents were female (71.9%), most were aged 26–30 years (57.0%), and 57.9% held a diploma qualification, while 48.2% had six to ten years of work experience. The analysis shows that participants’ correct responses ranged from 45.6% to 77.2%, indicating that nurses had fair to moderate knowledge regarding CAUTI prevention. Results: The highest proportion of correct response (77.2%) was recorded for the statement “bladder irrigation/washout using antiseptic/antimicrobial agents reduces risk of CAUTI.” However, the least correct response (45.6%) was about day before clamping if drain op and clamp-off indicated after removal of a catheter. Nurses had moderate knowledge on the significance of the use of silicone catheters for long-term use, hand hygiene and antiseptic cleansing prior to catheter insertion, and continuous irrigation when obstruction was expected. Nevertheless, misperceptions persisted with respect to urine specimen collection, catheter removal processes and antimicrobial prophylaxis