Nurses' knowledge, self-efficacy, and workplace support in fall prevention: a cross-sectional study.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Research
• Patient Safety
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Patient falls are a significant safety concern in hospitals, especially in resource-limited settings.
• Nurses' ability to prevent falls is often compromised by inadequate training, low self-confidence, and insufficient organizational backing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the links between nurses' knowledge of fall prevention, their self-efficacy, and structural empowerment.
• To determine how these elements collectively impact fall prevention success in Jordanian hospitals.

Main Methods:

• A quantitative, cross-sectional study involving 78 registered nurses from medical, surgical, and geriatric units.
• Utilized validated questionnaires: Fall Prevention Knowledge Test (FPKT), Self-Efficacy for Preventing Falls Scale (SEPFN), and Conditions of Work Effectiveness Questionnaire II (CWEQ-II).
• Data analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression in SPSS v25.

Main Results:

• A significant positive correlation was observed between fall prevention knowledge and self-efficacy (r=0.294, p=0.017).
• Structural empowerment did not moderate the relationship between knowledge and self-efficacy.
• A negative correlation existed between self-efficacy and perceived institutional support (r=-0.249, p=0.047).
• Units with higher average nurse self-efficacy showed a trend towards lower fall rates (2.1 vs 3.4 per 1000 patient days), though not statistically significant (p=0.089).

Conclusions:

• Nurses' knowledge and self-efficacy are crucial for effective patient fall prevention.
• Existing institutional support may not adequately meet the needs of nurses with high self-efficacy.
• Recommendations include targeted training, mentorship, workload management, and personalized support systems to enhance patient safety and fall prevention protocols.