KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS EYE DONATION AMONG BACHELOR OF NURSING STUDENTS

Background: Corneal blindness, the second major cause of blindness in Nepal, can only be treated by corneal transplants which required an eye donor. The rate of eye donation can be increased by increasing knowledge and awareness programs among all peoples. The purpose of this study is to assess the knowledge and attitude among Bachelor students of Nursing. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted among 153 Bachelor of Nursing Students in Bharatpur using probability sampling technique. Data was collected by using self-administered questionnaire. Data was entered and analysis using SPSS-16. Data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistical tools. P-value less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Among the 153 students more than two thirds of the students 121(79.1%) were in the age group of 21-25 years and most of the students were from B.Sc Nursing 97(63.4%). More than half 91(59.5%) had good knowledge and more than half of the students 78(51%) have a good attitude regarding eye donation. Knowledge regarding eye donation and level of education found to be statistically significant(p=0.01). Conclusions: This study concluded that more than half of the students had good knowledge and around half of students had a good attitude regarding eye donation. Hence, educating this framework to sensitize them toward the need for eye donation would be an imperative step toward reducing the global burden of corneal blindness.