Instruments for assessing professional nursing practice environments: An integrative review

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Management
• Quality Improvement

Background:

• Professional nursing practice environments significantly impact patient care quality and nurse retention.
• Evaluating these environments requires validated and reliable instruments.
• Previous reviews have not comprehensively synthesized available assessment tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically identify and categorize instruments used for evaluating professional nursing practice environments within hospital settings.
• To analyze the thematic areas related to the use of these instruments.

Main Methods:

• An integrative review methodology was employed.
• Data were systematically searched and extracted from CINAHL, PubMed, and SciELO databases.
• Two researchers independently screened 53 studies published between 2009 and 2019.

Main Results:

• Ten distinct instruments were identified for assessing nursing practice environments.
• Three primary thematic areas emerged: instrument development, implications of use, and identified limitations.
• The identified instruments varied in their focus and scope.

Conclusions:

• Existing instruments are relevant but may not fully capture all essential components of nursing practice environments.
• There is a need for comprehensive assessment tools that integrate structure, process, and outcome elements.
• Further research should focus on developing and validating instruments that provide a holistic view of the nursing practice environment.