Assessment of clinical and communication skills: operationalizing Benner's model

The introduction of ward-based clinical assessment of nursing skills in the 1970s meant a more realistic method of assessment, but still essentially a 'snapshot' of the student's practical abilities. This now being replaced by continuous clinical assessment which requires that student nurses meet the expected level of competence in a range of nursing skills in each clinical placement. Benner's (1984) model of skill acquisition is currently receiving considerable attention by nurse educationalists and is providing the framework for many curricula (English 1993). The model identifies five stages of development in nursing: novice; advanced beginner; competent; proficient; and expert. What is needed, however, is a more detailed description of what those stages mean in terms of the component parts of nursing, especially the clinical and communication skills. This paper describes a framework for the assessment of clinical and communication skills, a framework which seeks to operationalize Benner's model by defining the level of performance expected in clinical and communication skills at each stage.