Abstract Background Nurses are the largest medical professional groups handling cancer patients. They are responsible for safely preparing and administering chemotherapy drugs (CDs), managing side effects, and educating patients and their families about the adverse effects of chemotherapy. In this regards their knowledge regarding cancer chemotherapy is pivotal for safe handling of cancer patients. Objectives This study aimed to assess the level of technical knowledge regarding the preparation and administration of chemotherapy and associated factors among the nurses of Bangladesh. Methods This was a cross-sectional study conducted among randomly selected 105 nurses working in cancer units of a selected tertiary level hospital in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. Data was collected by semi-structured questionnaire through face-to-face interviews. A binary logistic regression model was used for analytical exploration. Adjusted and Unadjusted Odds Ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated for the specified setting indicators. A Chi-square test was used to observe the association. Participants scoring ≥ 80% were classified as having good knowledge, while those scoring < 50% were categorized as having poor knowledge, based on prior studies in LMICs. Ethical issues were maintained according to the Declaration of Helsinki. Results The result showed that a majority (58.1%) of the nurses were from ≤ 32 years of age group among whom 90.5% of the respondents did not get any training on cancer patient management. It is significantly revealed that respondents (77.1%) who had a poor basic knowledge of cancer and chemotherapy were found to have poor technical knowledge (55.2%) of chemo preparation and administration (AOR/p = 6.58/0.01; 95% CI: 1.29–21.78). In addition, poor knowledge of chemo preparation and administration was also observed as statistically significant among the diploma nurses (AOR/p = 3.91/0.01), who completed their nursing education from a private organization (AOR/p = 4.57/0.01) and had a minimum of working experience in cancer unit (AOR/p = 4.73/0.04). Conclusion The negative portrayal regarding knowledge of chemo preparation and administration among the nurses is alarming for the quality of health care in cancer management. Continuous knowledge upgradation is needed for using safety measures and following guidelines in every step of the work with the concern of proper policies.
Akter et al. (Wed,) studied this question.