Evaluation of nurses' knowledge levels and attitudes towards the prevention and care of pressure ulcers

Pressure sores are a common tissue damage and a health problem affecting public health. Nurses play critical roles in the prevention of pressure sores. The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between nurses' knowledge level and attitudes on pressure sore prevention. A total of 337 nurses working within a private healthcare group in Istanbul participated in the study. According to the results, as the level of knowledge about pressure sores increases in nurses, their attitudes also progress positively. The increase in the experience of nurses increases the level of knowledge on pressure sores prevention and contributes to the positive development of attitudes. As the level of education of nurses increases, their competence level on pressure sore prevention increases. The results obtained in the study revealed that nurses working in intensive care units have a higher level of competence on pressure sore prevention compared to nurses working in other units due to the higher prevalence of pressure sores. The results of the study are limited to the responses of 337 nurses. Keywords: Attitude, knowledge level, nurse, nursing care, pressure sore