RESUMEN
Ventilator associated pneumonia is the most common hospital-acquired infection among patients receiving mechanical ventilation in pediatric intensive care unit. Using an evidence based guidelines for the prevention of ventilator associated pneumonia [VAP] are recommended. To investigate nurses' knowledge and practice toward evidence-based guidelines for the prevention of ventilator associated pneumonia in pediatric intensive care units. A quasi-experimental pre-post intervention study was done on 51 nurses of different categories working in medical, neurology and surgical ICU at Mansoura university children's Hospital, Egypt. Three tools were used; An interview questionnaire sheet was developed by the researcher in Arabic language. Nurses' knowledge of evidence-based guidelines for the prevention of VAP, multiple choice questionnaire and observational checklist for nurses' performance to ventilator bundles for VAP prevention. Mean score level of nurses general knowledge about VAP, knowledge of Evidence-based guidelines for VAP prevention and nurses performance to ventilator bundled for VAP prevention where the mean score were 8.6078 +/- 19908, 2.4706 +/- 1.3469, 2.1400 +/- 1.4287 respectively before program implementation compared to 12.1569 +/- 1.0464, 7.2941 +/- 1.7005, 5.5800 +/- 1.5265 respectively after program. There is a highly significant difference between nurses knowledge and practices to Evidence-based guidelines for prevention of VAP before and after the program [t= -11.059, -22.106, -13.796 and p=.000, 0.000, 0.000 respectively]. Adequate improvement in nurses' knowledge and practice after applied evidence based guidelines for prevention of ventilator associated pneumonia in pediatric intensive care unit