Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health issue globally, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Early detection and management of TB are crucial, but nurses encounter various obstacles that highlight the need for focused interventions. In Southwestern Uganda, there is a lack of studies on nurses’ knowledge, practices, and barriers related to early TB detection. This study aimed to explore these factors among nurses at Health Centre IVs in Southwestern Uganda. Using Lewin’s Theory of Organizational Change, the study focused on the “unfreezing” stage to examine nurses’ knowledge and practices. A cross-sectional research design was used, sourveying 60 nurses from three Health Centre IVs. The results showed only 20% had excellent knowledge of TB detection, and 67% displayed poor practices. Many faced significant barriers, including lack of training and resources, which hinder early detection. The study concluded that there are notable gaps in nurses’ knowledge and practices regarding early TB detection and recommended ongoing training and standardized guidelines to improve these issues and reduce stigma surrounding TB.
Published in | American Journal of Nursing Science (Volume 14, Issue 4) |
DOI | 10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12 |
Page(s) | 68-82 |
Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Knowledge, Practices, Barriers, Tuberculosis, Early TB Detection, Nurses, Southwestern Uganda
Demographic Characteristics | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) |
---|---|---|
Age (years) | ||
20-29 | 17 | 28 |
30-39 | 34 | 57 |
40-49 | 7 | 12 |
50-59 | 2 | 3 |
Gender | ||
Female | 37 | 62 |
Male | 23 | 38 |
Department | ||
Maternal Child Health | 10 | 17 |
Outpatient Department | 50 | 83 |
Education Level | ||
Bachelor's Degree | 3 | 5 |
Certificate | 36 | 60 |
Diploma | 21 | 35 |
Years of practice (years) | ||
≤5 | 11 | 18 |
6 - 10 | 8 | 13 |
11- 15 | 17 | 28 |
16 or more | 24 | 40 |
Training on Tuberculosis | ||
Yes | 60 | 100 |
Training Source | ||
At Training School | 34 | 57 |
No Training After School | 26 | 43 |
Combined Knowledge Level | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) | 95% C.I |
---|---|---|---|
Excellent Knowledge (≥75%) | 12 | 20 | 9.7-29.0 |
Good knowledge (50% to 74%) | 25 | 42 | 29.0-53.2 |
Poor Knowledge (<50%) | 23 | 38 | 24.2-50.0 |
Category | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) | 95% C.I |
---|---|---|---|
Excellent Knowledge (≥75%) | 15 | 25 | 14.5-35.5 |
Good knowledge (50% to 74%) | 30 | 50 | 35.5-59.7 |
Poor Knowledge (<50%) | 15 | 25 | 14.5-35.5 |
Category | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) | 95% C.I |
---|---|---|---|
Excellent Knowledge (≥75%) | 14 | 23 | 12.9-33.9 |
Good knowledge (50% to 74%) | 29 | 48 | 33.9-58.1 |
Poor Knowledge (<50%) | 17 | 28 | 16.1-38.7 |
Category | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) | 95% C.I |
---|---|---|---|
Excellent Practice (≥3.5) | 0 | 0 | 0-0 |
Good practice (3-3.49) | 1 | 2 | 0.0-4.8 |
Poor Practice (2-2.99) | 40 | 67 | 52.4-74.6 |
Very Poor Practice (0-1.99) | 19 | 32 | 19.0-39.7 |
Category | Frequency (f) | Percentage (%) | 95% C.I |
---|---|---|---|
High Barrier (3-4.00) | 45 | 75 | 61.3-83.9 |
Moderate Barrier (1-2.99) | 15 | 25 | 14.5-35.5 |
Low Barrier (0-0.99) | 0 | 0 | 0-0 |
Barrier | Mean | SD |
---|---|---|
Lack of trainings, awareness and TB guidelines | 3.45 | 0.657 |
Lack of diagnostic equipment and poor supply of infection prevention materials | 3.425 | 0.716 |
Stigma and belief that TB is a high risk disease | 3.142 | 0.768 |
Human resource constraints that may result in delays to receive TB lab results | 3.383 | 0.865 |
AIDS | Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome |
COVID-19 | Corona Virus Disease-2019 |
HIV | Human Immuno-deficiency Virus |
HMIS | Health Management Information System |
ICF | Intensified TB Case Finding |
REC | Research Ethics Committee |
SPSS | Statistical Package for the Social Sciences |
TB | Tuberculosis |
UCU | Uganda Christian University |
WHO | World Health Organization |
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APA Style
Habimana, S., Drake, K., Holt, K. (2025). Knowledge, Practice, and Barriers of Nurses About Early TB Detection in Selected Health Centre IVs in a District in South-western Uganda. American Journal of Nursing Science, 14(4), 68-82. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12
ACS Style
Habimana, S.; Drake, K.; Holt, K. Knowledge, Practice, and Barriers of Nurses About Early TB Detection in Selected Health Centre IVs in a District in South-western Uganda. Am. J. Nurs. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 68-82. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12
@article{10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12, author = {Simon Habimana and Karen Drake and Ketty Holt}, title = {Knowledge, Practice, and Barriers of Nurses About Early TB Detection in Selected Health Centre IVs in a District in South-western Uganda }, journal = {American Journal of Nursing Science}, volume = {14}, number = {4}, pages = {68-82}, doi = {10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12}, url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12}, eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajns.20251404.12}, abstract = {Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health issue globally, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Early detection and management of TB are crucial, but nurses encounter various obstacles that highlight the need for focused interventions. In Southwestern Uganda, there is a lack of studies on nurses’ knowledge, practices, and barriers related to early TB detection. This study aimed to explore these factors among nurses at Health Centre IVs in Southwestern Uganda. Using Lewin’s Theory of Organizational Change, the study focused on the “unfreezing” stage to examine nurses’ knowledge and practices. A cross-sectional research design was used, sourveying 60 nurses from three Health Centre IVs. The results showed only 20% had excellent knowledge of TB detection, and 67% displayed poor practices. Many faced significant barriers, including lack of training and resources, which hinder early detection. The study concluded that there are notable gaps in nurses’ knowledge and practices regarding early TB detection and recommended ongoing training and standardized guidelines to improve these issues and reduce stigma surrounding TB.}, year = {2025} }
TY - JOUR T1 - Knowledge, Practice, and Barriers of Nurses About Early TB Detection in Selected Health Centre IVs in a District in South-western Uganda AU - Simon Habimana AU - Karen Drake AU - Ketty Holt Y1 - 2025/08/27 PY - 2025 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12 DO - 10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12 T2 - American Journal of Nursing Science JF - American Journal of Nursing Science JO - American Journal of Nursing Science SP - 68 EP - 82 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2328-5753 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20251404.12 AB - Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health issue globally, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Early detection and management of TB are crucial, but nurses encounter various obstacles that highlight the need for focused interventions. In Southwestern Uganda, there is a lack of studies on nurses’ knowledge, practices, and barriers related to early TB detection. This study aimed to explore these factors among nurses at Health Centre IVs in Southwestern Uganda. Using Lewin’s Theory of Organizational Change, the study focused on the “unfreezing” stage to examine nurses’ knowledge and practices. A cross-sectional research design was used, sourveying 60 nurses from three Health Centre IVs. The results showed only 20% had excellent knowledge of TB detection, and 67% displayed poor practices. Many faced significant barriers, including lack of training and resources, which hinder early detection. The study concluded that there are notable gaps in nurses’ knowledge and practices regarding early TB detection and recommended ongoing training and standardized guidelines to improve these issues and reduce stigma surrounding TB. VL - 14 IS - 4 ER -