Genetics in Nursing: A Cross-Sectional Study on Knowledge, Attitudes, and Readiness to Practice among Final-Year Diploma Nursing Students in Western Province, Sri Lanka

Introduction: Genetics and genomics are increasingly integrated into nursing practice worldwide, influencing disease prevention, risk assessment, and personalized care. However, in Sri Lanka, nursing curricula provide limited exposure to genetics, leaving gaps in competence despite national advances in healthcare genetics. This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and readiness to practice genetics among final-year diploma nursing students in the three National Schools of Nursing in the Western Province, Sri Lanka.  
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between May 2024 and February 2025 among 297 final-year nursing students, selected through systematic sampling. Data were collected using a pre-tested, structured, self-administered questionnaire adapted from internationally validated instruments designed to assess nurses’ genomic knowledge, attitudes, and readiness for practice. The adapted tool demonstrated good psychometric properties, with established validity and reliability in preliminary testing. Descriptive statistics summarized demographic data, while chi-square tests, t-tests, ANOVA, and Pearson’s correlation explored associations between knowledge, attitudes, and readiness to practice. 
Results: Most participants were female (90.2%), aged 23–28 years. Nearly half (46.5%) demonstrated poor knowledge of genetics, while 29.3% had good knowledge. Knowledge levels were not significantly associated (p < 0.05) with age or gender. Positive attitudes were reported by 65% of participants, with no significant socio-demographic associations. A large majority (95.3%) expressed readiness to practice genetics in nursing, though weak positive correlations were observed between knowledge and attitudes (r = 0.15, p = 0.009), and between knowledge and readiness (r = 0.25, p < 0.001).  
Conclusion: Nursing students in Sri Lanka show high readiness and positive attitudes towards incorporating genetics into practice; however, knowledge remains inadequate across institutions. These findings highlight the need to strengthen nursing curricula, faculty development, and competency-based genomics training to ensure a well-prepared nursing workforce capable of delivering personalized, genetics-informed care.