Medical specialists’ knowledge, attitude, and practice toward pulmonary nodules management

Knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) studies provide important data for designing and implementing education interventions. No data from China are available regarding the KAP of medical specialists toward pulmonary nodules. This study aimed to explore the medical specialists’ KAP toward pulmonary nodule management. This cross-sectional study was conducted on medical specialists working in our hospital between April and May 2023. A self-administered questionnaire was developed for data collection and KAP assessment. A total of 222 valid questionnaires were included. Their mean knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were 7.08 ± 1.69 (possible range: 0–12), 21.06 ± 2.65 (possible range: 6–30), and 19.58 ± 2.63 (possible range: 5–25) points, corresponding to 59.00%, 70.20%, and 78.32% of the respective maximum possible scores. Pearson’s correlation analysis showed weak positive correlations of knowledge with attitude ( r = 0.221, P = 0.001) and practice ( r = 0.232, P = 0.001), and a moderate positive correlation between attitude and practice ( r = 0.474, P < 0.001). Moreover, after adjustment, the structural equation model (SEM)-path analysis showed that attitude was directly associated with practice (β = 0.233, P < 0.001), age was directly associated with practice (β = 0.546, P = 0.026), patient management was directly associated with practice (β = 0.223, P = 0.026), and the department was directly associated with knowledge (β=-0.210, P = 0.002). Medical specialists had a suboptimal mean knowledge score (59.00% of the maximum possible score), while their mean attitude and practice scores were 70.20% and 78.32% of the respective maxima. Attitude, age, and patient management experience were associated with practice, and the department was associated with knowledge. Not applicable.