Building Consensus on the Essential Quantitative Competencies, Skills, and Practices for Entry-Level Nurses.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Quantitative Skills Assessment
• Mathematics in Healthcare

Background:

• National recommendations emphasize the need to define essential quantitative competencies for safe nursing practice.
• Existing frameworks lack consensus on the specific quantitative skills required for entry-level nurses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish consensus among nursing and mathematics educators on critical quantitative competencies for entry-level nurses.
• To identify essential quantitative skills, skills, and practices vital for safe and effective nursing care.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive survey design was employed, collecting data from nursing educators across the United States.
• Participants rated 64 quantitative items on a three-item Likert scale (essential, nice to have, not necessary).
• Fisher's exact test analyzed differences in perceptions between associate and bachelor's degree nursing programs.

Main Results:

• A total of 76 educators from 31 states participated in the survey.
• Five key content domains encompassing essential quantitative items were identified.
• Significant differences in the perceived importance of probability and statistics competencies were observed between educational levels.

Conclusions:

• The study provides a foundational consensus on essential quantitative competencies for nursing education.
• Findings support collaborative efforts to refine educational curricula and teaching practices for nursing students.
• Addressing identified gaps in quantitative education is crucial for enhancing the preparedness of future nurses.