“Conocimientos en estudiantes de Enfermería sobre cuidados en infecciones respiratorias agudas, Azogues, diciembre 2022 – abril 2023”

Abstract

Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are one of the leading morbidity and mortality causes worldwide; in Ecuador, the most frequent are colds, pharyngitis, and tonsillitis, with a higher incidence in children under five and older adults with a tendency to present complications. Knowledge about ARI care is essential to reduce the associated morbidity and mortality. Objective: To determine nursing students' knowledge about acute respiratory infection care, in Azogues, from December 2022 to April 2023. Methods: A descriptive, quantitative, and cross-sectional study was conducted with the difference of means between academic cycles and knowledge, with an instrument validated by experts, applied to 240 nursing students in the academic and practice areas. Results: There is a predominance of the female sex 77.08 %; the most representative was the eighth cycle with 25.4%; the care knowledge was mid with 47.9% with a more significant relation of women. It was evidenced that in the fourth, fifth, and sixth cycles, their knowledge is homogeneous, unlike the seventh, eighth, and 9th cycle where the expertise level is varied, establishing that the higher the educational process, the higher the knowledge level. Conclusion: The study population has average knowledge, which improves as the academic cycles go by, and is considered essential for future professionals to act efficiently in Acute Respiratory infection care.