Can Nursing Students' Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Climate Change Be Strengthened for a Sustainable Future?: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Climate change is a major global problem threatening individual health, public health, and health systems. Climate change poses a significant global threat to social and environmental health determinants, such as the disruption of food systems, the spread of climate-sensitive diseases, and the increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that climate change will cause approximately 250,000 additional deaths annually from malaria, diarrhea, malnutrition, and heat stress between 2030 and 2050. Climate change leads to increased mortality and illness due to extreme weather events such as heat waves, storms, and floods; increases in the frequency and intensity of food-borne, water-borne, and vector-borne infectious diseases; exacerbations of chronic diseases; and increases in mental health problems. Consequently, it negatively impacts individual health physically, mentally, and socially. Due to the increasingly negative impacts of climate change on human health, nurses can serve as expert resources for patients, community members, and policymakers. However, nurses need to be well-equipped and highly aware of this issue. In this context, it is emphasized that nurses' climate-related competencies should be enhanced both today and in the future, starting with the educational process and developing independent practices rather than topics covered in existing courses. In this context, nursing students, as future healthcare providers, need to be prepared and knowledgeable about global warming, climate change and its impacts on health, climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience, and the promotion of a healthy environment for a sustainable future. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of climate change education on nursing students' knowledge and attitudes regarding climate change and health.