Knowledge, attitude and practice toward rational use of medications among nurses at hospitals of Dhamar city: a cross-sectional study

Rational use of medications is important in ensuring effective disease treatment, patient safety and good healthcare services. Therefore, nurses must be prepared with essential knowledge, and sufficient attitude and practice regarding rational use of medications. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate knowledge, attitude and practice regarding rational use of medications among hospital’s nurses. A cross-sectional study was conducted between December 2024 and February 2025, at 11 hospitals (1 public, 10 private) at Dhamar city, Yemen. A convenience sampling technique was adopted to recruit 268 participants from all accessible nurses in the targeted hospitals during the study period. Knowledge, attitude and practice of nurses regarding the rational use of medications were assessed by using of a validated questionnaire. Bloom’s cut-off points for adequate practice, appropriate knowledge, and a positive attitude were applied. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS. Out of 268 respondent nurses, 56% were females, 56.3% had 1–4 years of work experience, and 71.6% had a diploma degree in nursing. Regarding rational use of medications, the mean scores of knowledge, attitudes, and practice were 9.8 ± 1.9 out of 13, 4.58 ± 0.41 out of 5, and 41.9 ± 4.3 out of 45, respectively. Consequently, 74.6% of nurses with a mean score of 9 or more had good knowledge, 94% with a mean score of 3.5 or higher expressed positive attitude, and 92.9% with a mean score of 32 or more had good practice. The regression model for knowledge was statistically significant (R² = 0.061, F = 2.430, p = 0.020). The majority of nurses in study area had a positive attitude level, and a good of knowledge and practice toward rational use of medications. However, there are still alarming gaps in some areas of their knowledge. Therefore, a mandatory continuous education program for nurses is needed to they develop more skills in their knowledge regarding rational use of medications and to they avoid negative consequences of irrational use of medication on both patients and community. Not applicable.