[Evaluation of clinical competence in the nursing profession]

The quality of health services depends on the competence of the health service professionals. It is essential to define and evaluate professional competences in order to improve professional development, ensure the quality of, and manage, professionals in terms of their competences. To do so, it is necessary to utilize a combination of different methods. The evaluation of the diverse stages related to nursing--at the end of undergraduate studies, postgraduate studies or specialization, and during independent work--has different proposals, content and methods; and the institutions implicated in these stages should make themselves responsible to acquire the professional which society needs. Since 1994, more than 150 projects have been carried out in Catalonia which confirm the validity, trustworthiness, acceptability and utility of these evaluative methods in undergraduate and postgraduate studies and in the selection and accreditation of professionals.