Background: Nursing professionals provide continuous, round-the-clock patient care, making it essential for them to maintain up-to-date knowledge and skills. Continuing education plays a vital role in professional development and in ensuring quality patient outcomes. The present study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of nurses regarding the importance of continuing education and to evaluate the effectiveness of a planned teaching program in enhancing their understanding. Methodology: An evaluative research approach with a one-group pre-test post-test design was adopted. Sixty nursing officers working in intensive care units at a selected hospital in Hubballi were chosen using probability sampling. Knowledge regarding the importance of continuing education was assessed using a validated tool (content validity index: 88%, reliability: 0.80). After the pre-test, a structured teaching program was administered, and a post-test was conducted after 20 days using the same instrument. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: The findings revealed a significant improvement of 30.88% in the mean post-test knowledge scores compared to the pre-test scores (t =  31.07, df = 59, p < 0.001), confirming the effectiveness of the teaching program. A greater proportion of participants achieved an adequate level of knowledge post-intervention. No significant associations were found between socio-demographic variables and knowledge or attitude, except for work experience. Conclusion: The study concluded that the planned teaching program was effective in improving nurses’ knowledge regarding continuing education. Ongoing professional development is essential to enhance nursing competence and ensure quality patient care.

Keywords: Continuing education, nursing knowledge, planned teaching program, professional development, intensive care nurses

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1. D’Souza M. Effect of planned teaching on knowledge and practice regarding the care of patients receiving anti-coagulant therapy among the nurses in the intensive care unit in a selected hospital. Asian J Nurs Educ Res. 2015 Jul–Sep;5(3):351–62. doi: 10.5958/2349-2996.2015.00072.5.
2. Shasikala V. 2022 Jul–Dec [cited 2025 Sep 16]. Available from: https://rvjns.rvcn.edu.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Article-7-1.pdf.
3. Rana R. Effectiveness of structured teaching program on knowledge regarding respectful maternity care among nurses working in maternity ward of selected hospital, Bangalore. Int J Adv Res Med Nurs Health Sci. 2024 Mar–Apr [cited 2025 Sep 16];6(4). Available from:

       https://www.ijfmr.com/papers/2024/2/16399.pdf.

4. Majeed S, Inayat S. International Journal of Novel Research in Healthcare and Nursing. Int J Novel Res Healthc Nurs. 2017 May–Aug;4(2):79–86. Available from: noveltyjournals.com.
5. Deitzen DM. Mathematical calculations ability of registered nurses [Master’s thesis]. Grand Valley State University; 1994. Available from: https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/theses/166.
6. Mohebi Z, Heidari Sarvestani M, Moradi Z, Naghizadeh MM. Female high school students' knowledge and attitude toward breast cancer. BMC Women’s Health. 2023;23:41. doi: 10.1186/s12905-023-02110-y.
7. Hossain MB, et al. Do knowledge and attitudes matter for preventive behavioral practices toward COVID-19? A cross-sectional online survey among the adult population in Bangladesh. Heliyon. 2020;6:e05799. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05799.
8. D’Souza SE, Qadiri GJ, Leena KC. Impact of planned teaching program on the attitude of nurses with regard to patient rights in two multispecialty teaching hospitals in India. J Educ Health Promot. 2020 Feb 28;9:36. doi: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_523_19. PMID: 32133009; PMCID: PMC7034281.
9. Das D, Ganguly S. A study to assess knowledge and attitude towards nursing profession among class XI and XII standard students in selected schools of West Bengal. Int J Health Sci Res. 2024 Dec;14(12):154–63.
10. Ibrahim SA, Hassan MA, Hamouda SI, Abd Allah NM. Effect of patients' rights training sessions for nurses on perceptions of nurses and patients. Nurs Ethics. 2017 Nov;24(7):856–67. doi: 10.1177/0969733015625365. Epub 2016 Jan 27. PMID: 26822299.

Background: Nursing professionals provide continuous, round-the-clock patient care, making it essential for them to maintain up-to-date knowledge and skills. Continuing education plays a vital role in professional development and in ensuring quality patient outcomes. The present study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of nurses regarding the importance of continuing education and to evaluate the effectiveness of a planned teaching program in enhancing their understanding. Methodology: An evaluative research approach with a one-group pre-test post-test design was adopted. Sixty nursing officers working in intensive care units at a selected hospital in Hubballi were chosen using probability sampling. Knowledge regarding the importance of continuing education was assessed using a validated tool (content validity index: 88%, reliability: 0.80). After the pre-test, a structured teaching program was administered, and a post-test was conducted after 20 days using the same instrument. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: The findings revealed a significant improvement of 30.88% in the mean post-test knowledge scores compared to the pre-test scores (t =  31.07, df = 59, p < 0.001), confirming the effectiveness of the teaching program. A greater proportion of participants achieved an adequate level of knowledge post-intervention. No significant associations were found between socio-demographic variables and knowledge or attitude, except for work experience. Conclusion: The study concluded that the planned teaching program was effective in improving nurses’ knowledge regarding continuing education. Ongoing professional development is essential to enhance nursing competence and ensure quality patient care.

Keywords: Continuing education, nursing knowledge, planned teaching program, professional development, intensive care nurses

🔒 This is a subscription article

Full text is available to subscribers and institutional members. Please choose an option below to access it.

1. D’Souza M. Effect of planned teaching on knowledge and practice regarding the care of patients receiving anti-coagulant therapy among the nurses in the intensive care unit in a selected hospital. Asian J Nurs Educ Res. 2015 Jul–Sep;5(3):351–62. doi: 10.5958/2349-2996.2015.00072.5.
2. Shasikala V. 2022 Jul–Dec [cited 2025 Sep 16]. Available from: https://rvjns.rvcn.edu.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Article-7-1.pdf.
3. Rana R. Effectiveness of structured teaching program on knowledge regarding respectful maternity care among nurses working in maternity ward of selected hospital, Bangalore. Int J Adv Res Med Nurs Health Sci. 2024 Mar–Apr [cited 2025 Sep 16];6(4). Available from:

       https://www.ijfmr.com/papers/2024/2/16399.pdf.

4. Majeed S, Inayat S. International Journal of Novel Research in Healthcare and Nursing. Int J Novel Res Healthc Nurs. 2017 May–Aug;4(2):79–86. Available from: noveltyjournals.com.
5. Deitzen DM. Mathematical calculations ability of registered nurses [Master’s thesis]. Grand Valley State University; 1994. Available from: https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/theses/166.
6. Mohebi Z, Heidari Sarvestani M, Moradi Z, Naghizadeh MM. Female high school students' knowledge and attitude toward breast cancer. BMC Women’s Health. 2023;23:41. doi: 10.1186/s12905-023-02110-y.
7. Hossain MB, et al. Do knowledge and attitudes matter for preventive behavioral practices toward COVID-19? A cross-sectional online survey among the adult population in Bangladesh. Heliyon. 2020;6:e05799. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05799.
8. D’Souza SE, Qadiri GJ, Leena KC. Impact of planned teaching program on the attitude of nurses with regard to patient rights in two multispecialty teaching hospitals in India. J Educ Health Promot. 2020 Feb 28;9:36. doi: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_523_19. PMID: 32133009; PMCID: PMC7034281.
9. Das D, Ganguly S. A study to assess knowledge and attitude towards nursing profession among class XI and XII standard students in selected schools of West Bengal. Int J Health Sci Res. 2024 Dec;14(12):154–63.
10. Ibrahim SA, Hassan MA, Hamouda SI, Abd Allah NM. Effect of patients' rights training sessions for nurses on perceptions of nurses and patients. Nurs Ethics. 2017 Nov;24(7):856–67. doi: 10.1177/0969733015625365. Epub 2016 Jan 27. PMID: 26822299.