Effect of Short Messages on ICU Nurses' Knowledge and Performance Regarding Ventilator‐Associated Pneumonia Prevention: A Quasi‐Experimental Study

BACKGROUND: Various teaching methods have been used to train healthcare staff in ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) prevention. Despite the positive results of blended learning in increasing nurses' knowledge and performance, there is a lack of robust, generalisable evidence on the medium- or long-term effectiveness of text messages as part of educational packages and microlearning on the sustainability of these outcomes. AIM: This study aims to examine the effectiveness of two teaching methods-lecture-based and blended (lecture plus text messages)-on nurses' knowledge and performance in VAP prevention in Kermanshah. STUDY DESIGN: Sixty Intensive care unit (ICU) nurses participated in a training session, randomly divided into intervention and control groups. The intervention group received educational messages containing key points from the training session every other day for 2 weeks; the control group did not receive messages. Knowledge and performance were measured before and after using a validated questionnaire to assess changes. RESULTS: The intervention and control groups each had 30 participants. Most nurses were women (n = 40, 66%), over half were over 30 years old (n = 28, 53%) and a significant proportion had less than 10 years of experience (n = 52, 86%). At pre-test, the mean knowledge scores were 21.1 ± 2.9 (intervention) and 20.2 ± 2.9 (control), with performance scores of 120.8 ± 10.4 and 120.1 ± 13.4, respectively. In post-test, the intervention group showed statistically significant improvements in knowledge (20.2 ± 1.5 vs. 22.1 ± 1.9; p < 0.001), performance (126.9 ± 8.2 vs. 120.8 ± 9.7; p < 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Ongoing short message service (SMS) reminders improved nurses' knowledge and performance in VAP prevention. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: This study demonstrates that a low-cost, affordable educational programme based on continuous repetition with brief content (short reminder short message service [SMS]) can significantly improve intensive care unit (ICU) nurses' knowledge and adherence to ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) prevention measures. Implementing such simple, concise interventions within continuing clinical education programmes can sustainably reinforce infection prevention behaviours and, in resource-limited settings, lead to improved clinical outcomes and reduced care costs.