Closing the gap: The effect of an evidence-based intervention in increasing COPD nurses' knowledge

Abstract

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) is the leading cause of respiratory failure and is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Nurses play a vital role in ensuring effective, safe, and person-centered care in COPD. Aim: To assess the effect of an evidence-based intervention in increasing the COPD knowledge in a sample of care nurses, staffing public primary, and secondary healthcare services infrastructures and hospitals. Methods: An intervention that entailed a combination of an educational program and the use of an educational algorithm based on the Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of COPD was performed. Results: At the baseline, the mean total percentage of correct answers was very low (52.74%) as opposed to the other time intervals in which there was a huge increase after the session that was maintained 3 and 6 months later. The highest effect in the total knowledge score was attributed to the educational session followed by the use of the educational algorithm. Conclusion: The effect of the intervention on the mean score of correct answers was very strong, which is confirmed by the consistency of the high performance of nurses after 3 and 6 months, respectively. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC