Background: The aim of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) is to regulate the collection, processing, and use of personal information; to avoid the infringement of personal rights; and to promote the reasonable use of personal information. Clinical nurses are frontline patient caregivers, and they are the most likely to have access to patients' personal information. If these nurses do not clearly understand the PDPA, they may violate the law and affect patients' rights.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the knowledge level of clinical nurses regarding the PDPA and related factors, with the findings intended to serve as a reference for continuing education.
Methods: A cross-sectional research design was adopted. A purposive sample of nurses working at a regional hospital in southern Taiwan was selected. A self-administered survey incorporating the self-developed Nurses Knowledge Scale for Patient Personal Data Protection Act (NKSPPDPA) was used to collect data from May to June 2017.
Results: A total of 269 valid responses were received (return rate: 89.67%). The mean score on the NKSPPDPA was 68.80 out of a total-possible 100 points. Knowledge related to patient privacy and penalties was relatively low. Moreover, working department, job title, and participation in PDPA-related on-the-job education were found to be significant predictors of NKSPPDPA score, while years of experience was found to have a low correlation only.
Conclusions: The results suggest that clinical nurses have knowledge gaps regarding PDPA, especially in terms of privacy and penalties. Nurses should participate in continuing education to address these knowledge gaps.
Title: 臨床護理人員對病人個人資料保護之知識調查.
背景: 「個人資料保護法」（簡稱個資法）規範個人資料之蒐集、處理及利用，目的為避免人格權受侵害並促進個人資料之合理利用。護理人員為第一線的照護者，常接觸到病人的個人資料，倘若對法規的認識不足，可能誤觸法律且影響病人權益。.
目的: 探討臨床護理人員對於病人個人資料保護的知識現況與相關因素，以做為規劃繼續教育之參考。.
方法: 採用橫斷式研究設計，立意抽樣南部某區域醫院之護理人員為研究對象，於2017年5–6月實施問卷調查，研究工具為自擬之「護理人員對病患個人資料保護法知識量表」。.
結果: 回收有效問卷269份（回收率89.67%），護理人員的知識得分平均為68.80/100，在病人隱私與罰則部分的觀念較不清楚。護理人員之服務單位、職稱、是否接受過個資法在職教育於知識得分有顯著差異，且護理工作年資與知識得分呈低度正相關。.
結論: 臨床護理人員對個資法的部分知識尚須充實，可藉由個資保護教育訓練，補強有關病人隱私與法規罰則的知識落差。.
Keywords: knowledge; law; nurses; personal data protection.