Knowledge, awareness, and practice of zinc supplementation in childhood diarrhoea management among Nigerian-trained nurses studying abroad: A cross-sectional study

Diarrhoea remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children under five years globally. Despite World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) recommendations for zinc supplementation alongside oral rehydration salts, implementation gaps persist among healthcare providers. To assess knowledge, awareness, and practice regarding zinc supplementation in childhood diarrhoea management among Nigerian-trained nurses studying abroad. A cross-sectional study was conducted in August-September 2016 among 63 Nigerian-trained nurses at Anglia Ruskin University, United Kingdom. Data were collected using an electronic questionnaire through snowball sampling and analysed using SPSS version 20.0 with Chi-square test to examine associations. Response rate was 96.9% (n=63). Ninety percent of nurses were aware of zinc supplementation, with 63% demonstrating adequate knowledge. Sixty-seven percent reported having used zinc supplements in practice in Nigeria. A significant association was found between knowledge and reported practice (χ²=32.904, p