Patient Safety Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Among Nursing Students: A Cross‐Sectional Multicultural Study

Background Patient safety (PS) is a cornerstone of nursing care; however, educational approaches to PS vary globally. Conceptualizing cross‐cultural differences in PS competence is essential for preparing nurses in diverse health care systems. Aim/objective To assess and compare PS knowledge, skills, and attitudes among nursing students in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Türkiye, and to examine the effect of demographic variables on these competencies. Design A multicenter, cross‐sectional study. Methods Data were collected over 16 weeks (Dec 2024–Mar 2025) from 447 undergraduate nursing students using a stratified random sampling method across public and private institutions in the four selected countries. The validated Patient Safety Competency Self‐Evaluation (PSCSE) instrument measured knowledge, skills, and attitudes. Analyses included ANOVA, t ‐tests, correlation, and regression. Results PS knowledge scores were uniform across countries ( η 2 = 0.009), showing no significant difference ( p > 0.05). In contrast, skills and attitudes significantly varied by country. For skills, the ANOVA was significant ( p = 0.013, η 2 = 0.012), with Saudi participants reporting the highest mean score. The country difference in attitudes was highly significant ( p = 0.001, η 2 = 0.041), with Jordanian students reporting the highest PS attitudes score. Furthermore, sex was a predictor across all domains in the pooled sample, showing a consistent medium effect size in the knowledge and attitude domains ( d ≈ 0.41). Furthermore, the result showed that university type (public or private) and age were also associated with differences in competencies. Conclusions Although knowledge of PS seems to be consistent among the participated countries, there are differences in skills and attitudes, which shows the impact of differences in the education and clinical settings. To improve the safety skills of nursing students among these countries, we need educational reforms that are tailored to each situation.