Graduating nursing students' basic competence in intensive and critical care nursing

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Critical Care Nursing
• Healthcare Workforce Development

Background:

• Intensive and critical care nursing requires skilled personnel for severely ill patients.
• There is a growing need for intensive and critical care nurses in Europe.
• New nursing graduates in Europe often begin practice in intensive care units, despite limited research on their competence.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe and evaluate the basic competence of graduating nursing students in intensive and critical care nursing.
• To investigate the relationship between self-assessed competence and objective knowledge assessment in these students.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey design was utilized.
• Graduating nursing students (n=139) completed the Intensive and Critical Care Nursing Competence Scale (version 1) and the Basic Knowledge Assessment Tool (version 7).

Main Results:

• 69% of students self-rated their basic competence as good.
• No significant association was found between self-assessed competence and knowledge test results.
• Student perception of competence was most strongly influenced by their anticipated autonomy in post-graduation nursing practice.

Conclusions:

• Graduating nursing students express confidence in their basic intensive and critical care nursing competence.
• Objective evaluation methods, such as knowledge tests, should complement self-assessment tools in nursing education.
• Developing self-evaluation skills through specific instruments is crucial in nursing education and clinical orientation programs.