Development and implementation of a scoring rubric for aseptic technique.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Education
• Patient Safety
• Clinical Skills Assessment

Background:

• Aseptic technique is crucial for preventing healthcare-associated infections during parenteral medication preparation.
• Objective assessment of aseptic technique is essential for ensuring student competency and patient safety.
• Existing methods for evaluating aseptic technique may lack standardization or detailed feedback.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a newly developed scoring rubric in assessing students' aseptic technique skills.
• To document the progression of student competency in parenteral preparation over an academic year.
• To identify specific areas within aseptic technique that require further curriculum development or emphasis.

Main Methods:

• A standardized scoring rubric was created to evaluate six key skill areas in aseptic technique for parenteral preparation.
• Student performance was categorized as "likely harmful," "needs improvement," or "acceptable" based on defined criteria.
• Assessments were conducted at baseline, and at the end of the fall and spring semesters.

Main Results:

• The percentage of "acceptable" ratings significantly increased from 51.1% at baseline to 88.9% by the end of the spring semester (p < 0.001).
• Conversely, "likely harmful" ratings decreased substantially from 30.9% at baseline to 3.5% by the end of the spring semester (p < 0.001).
• The proportion of students with at least one "likely harmful" rating dropped from 85.6% to 18.3% (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• The developed scoring rubric effectively documented measurable improvements in students' aseptic technique.
• The rubric served as a valuable tool for identifying specific curriculum areas needing enhanced focus.
• Implementation of the rubric supports the goal of improving patient safety through skilled healthcare professionals.