Empowerment of nurses' knowledge and skills on violence against women with mental illness: A randomized controlled trail

Nurses play a key role in identifying and supporting women with abusive experiences. However, research that evaluated the effectiveness of educational interventions on violence against women is sparse from India.

To evaluate the effectiveness of a training program in improving nurses' knowledge and skills related to the identification and management of abused Women with Mental Illness (WMI).

A randomized controlled trial design was adopted for the present study. A total of 68 nurses were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group (34 in each group). The experimental group was provided eight interactive sessions based on a Nursing Module on abuse among women with mental illness. The assessments were done in both groups at baseline, after the intervention, at three months and six months. The data was collected using a self-rated questionnaire and case vignettes.

The mean knowledge score increased significantly in the experimental group after the intervention from 12.26 (SD, 2.03) to 23.60 (SD,1.24) and sustained at three months (23.07 ± 0.94) and six months (23.13 ± 1.61). Similarly, there were significant differences in nurses' skills after the training program (t = 13.17, p < 0.001) and at different time points of assessment (p < 0.001).

Results showed that training had a positive impact on nurses' knowledge and skills related to violence against women with mental illness. Therefore, it is necessary to provide continuous training on this issue to help nurses in providing holistic care to this vulnerable population.