A cultural adaptation study of nursing informatics competency scale

Area of Science:

• Nursing Informatics
• Health Informatics
• Educational Measurement

Background:

• Nursing informatics is crucial for modern healthcare practice.
• A validated tool is needed to assess nursing informatics competency in Turkey.
• Existing instruments may not be culturally or linguistically appropriate for the Turkish context.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the factor structure, reliability, and responsiveness of the Self-Assessment of Nursing Informatics Competency Scale-18 (SNICS-18) in Turkish nurses.
• To provide a psychometrically sound instrument for measuring informatics competency among nurses in Turkey.
• To contribute to the integration of informatics into nursing education and practice.

Main Methods:

• Methodological study utilizing a translated and back-translated SNICS-18.
• Data collected from 190 nurses in a Turkish hospital setting.
• Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and multi-group Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were employed to assess construct validity and factorial invariance.

Main Results:

• EFA identified three factors explaining 62.1% of the variance: applied computer skills (α=.91), role (α=.67), and basic computer skills (α=.77).
• The scale demonstrated good internal consistency reliability for the overall instrument and its subscales.
• Factorial invariance supported the structural integrity of the instrument across different groups.

Conclusions:

• The Turkish version of the SNICS-18 is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing nursing informatics competency.
• The findings support the theoretical framework of informatics competence in nursing practice.
• This validated tool can be used to identify educational needs and guide informatics training for nurses in Turkey.