EFFECT OF AN INFECTION CONTROL EDUCATION PROGRAM ON NURSES’ AND NURSING STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE, AND COMPLIANCE WITH INFECTION CONTROL MEASURES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS

Background: Nurses play a pivotal role in infection control in routine clinical practice, and strengthening infection control competencies remains essential for ensuring patient and healthcare worker safety. Aims: This review aimed to reconfirm the effects of infection control education programs on nurses’ and nursing students’ knowledge, attitudes, and compliance with infection control measures, and to identify key educational characteristics associated with greater effectiveness. Design: This systematic review and meta-analysis followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Data Sources and Review Methods: Studies were retrieved from Ovid-EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PubMed. Studies related to infection control education programs published between January 1, 2000 and March 31, 2024 were included. Comprehensive Meta-Analysis 4.0 software was used for data analysis. Overall effects were estimated using Hedges’ g and Z-statistics, and heterogeneity was assessed using I² statistics. Results: Nineteen studies were included, comprising ten studies involving nursing students and nine involving nurses. Infection control education was associated with improvements in knowledge, attitudes, and compliance, with medium to very large pooled effect sizes. However, substantial heterogeneity was observed across studies. Meta-regression analysis identified educational method, particularly the use of innovative approaches such as simulation and virtual reality, as a significant moderator of knowledge outcomes. Conclusion: Infection control education is associated with improvements in infection control competencies among nurses and nursing students, although effects vary across programs. The findings suggest that optimizing educational design—especially through the use of innovative, experiential teaching methods—may enhance the effectiveness of infection control education. Keywords: infection control, meta-analysis, nurses, nursing students, review