Knowledge and Self-Reported Practice of Bag Valve Mask Use in Neonatal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation among Nurses in Secondary Health Facilities in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Effective bag valve mask (BVM) ventilation is the single most important intervention for a non-breathing newborn, and the nurse who delivers it must possess both sound knowledge and consistent practice. Evidence on these competencies among nurses in Nigerian secondary health facilities, the first formal referral level for neonatal emergencies, remains scarce. Objective: To assess the knowledge and self-reported practice of BVM use in neonatal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) among nurses in secondary health facilities in Ekiti State, Nigeria, and to examine their relationship and socio-demographic correlates. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among 128 registered nurses selected using proportionate stratified random sampling from six secondary health facilities across the three senatorial districts of Ekiti State. Data were collected with the validated Bag Valve Mask Neonatal Resuscitation Assessment Questionnaire (BVM-NRAQ) and analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson's product-moment correlation and the chi-square test at p < 0.05 in SPSS version 28. Results: Most nurses demonstrated moderate-to-good knowledge (mean = 13.30/20; 35.2% good, 48.4% moderate, 16.4% poor), with gaps concentrated in technical parameters such as inspiratory time, compression-to-ventilation ratio and mask sizing. Self-reported practice was largely moderate to good (mean = 44.20/60; 40.6% good, 50.0% moderate, 9.4% poor), with documentation, heart-rate reassessment and participation in skills drills being the weakest behaviours. Knowledge correlated positively with practice (r = 0.436, p < 0.001). Highest qualification, years of experience and previous resuscitation training were significantly associated with knowledge, while experience, ward of posting and previous training were associated with practice (all p < 0.05). Conclusion: Nurses' knowledge and practice of neonatal BVM use were satisfactory but incomplete. Regular, competency-based retraining that targets technical parameters and translates knowledge into documented, drilled practice is warranted, particularly for less experienced and previously untrained nurses.