Knowledge, Adherence and Barriers towards the Prevention of Ventilator Associated Pneumonia among Nurses

Ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) is a common and potentially fatal complication that often encountered within intensive care units (ICU). Prevention of VAP is considered a priority among ICU nurses and measures to prevent VAP are therefore a significant component of nursing care. The study aimed at finding out the knowledge, adherence and barriers towards prevention of Ventilator associated pneumonia among nurses. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among 136 nurses working in critical care units of Chitwan Medical College Teaching Hospital and College of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Chitwan in which semi-structured self administered questionnaire was used. Data were statistically analyzed by using descriptive statistics and chi-square test. The study findings revealed that 14.7 % of respondents had good level of knowledge and more than half (51.5 %) of the respondents had low adherence towards prevention of VAP and the major barriers towards prevention of VAP were lack of VAP guidelines (70.6 %), lack of guidance (72.8 %), lack of training (72.8 %), influence from senior/peer practice (64 %), lack of time (77.2 %), lack of adequate resources (100 %) and inadequate staff (89.7 %). There was statistically significant association between adherence status towards prevention of VAP and level of education (p