Abstract
BACKGROUND: Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programs are crucial for enhancing the quality of healthcare delivery. The presence of incompetent and unskilled healthcare professionals is not satisfactory. This study aimed to evaluate nurses' engagement in CPD programs and identify the barriers affecting this engagement. METHODS: A mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional studies, was employed from April 1 to 30, 2022. The quantitative component involved 271 randomly selected nurses, while nine key informants were purposively chosen for qualitative analysis. Data were collected using a structured self-administered questionnaire with a content validity index of 0.91 and an interview guide. Ethical guidelines were strictly followed. Quantitative data were entered into Epi-data version 3.1 and analyzed with SPSS version 25.0. Descriptive statistics described participant characteristics, while chi-square tests and logistic regression analyses assessed the relationships between independent and outcome variables, with significance set at p < 0.05 and goodness-of-fit evaluated by the Hosmer-Lemeshow test (>0.05). Qualitative data were analyzed using manual exploratory descriptive methods and thematic analysis. RESULTS: Of the 271 nurses, 262 (96.7%) participated, with a median age of 28 years. The overall CPD engagement rate was 34.4%. Factors influencing CPD engagement included financial constraints (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.1, 95% CI: 1.28-7.52), lack of access to CPD information (AOR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.12-0.76), time constraints due to family commitments (AOR = 3.35, 95% CI: 1.08-10.34), and insufficient CPD resources (AOR = 0.15, 95% CI: 0.03-0.742). Qualitative findings revealed low CPD engagement levels, insufficient financial support, reluctance to self-finance training, the positive impact of diverse training mediums, and barriers related to nurses' attitudes and the availability of training. CONCLUSION: Nurses' engagement in CPD is notably low. Financial and time constraints, along with limited access to information and resources, significantly hinder participation in CPD activities.