Strengthening infection prevention education among undergraduate nursing students through a curriculum-integrated escape room intervention: A comparative cohort study

Aim/objective To examine whether a curriculum-integrated IPC escape room was associated with improved undergraduate nursing students’ knowledge. Methods and results This comparative cohort study included 318 fourth-semester nursing students in a control cohort ( n = 163) and an intervention cohort ( n = 155). The intervention cohort completed a mandatory escape room with a digital quiz and four hands-on stations. Knowledge was assessed using the same 40-item final examination. The intervention cohort achieved higher scores than controls (median 7.25 [interquartile range 2.25] vs 5.50 [interquartile range 1.25], p < 0.001). Significant improvements were observed in hand hygiene, preventive care bundles, outbreak investigation, and correct PPE doffing sequence (all p < 0.001), with large effects in key domains (r ≥ 0.50) and a smaller effect for outbreak investigation (r = 0.20). Student satisfaction was high. Discussion Integrating an IPC escape room may strengthen knowledge acquisition in key IPC domains. Further work should examine retention and scalability. Significance and impact Game-based learning may offer a useful educational strategy for reinforcing key IPC practices.