Operating Room Nurses Want Differentiated Education for Perioperative Competencies—Based on the Clinical Ladder

Abstract

Operating room (OR) nurses’ perioperative competence is vital in operation and patient care. This cross-sectional descriptive study aimed to identify perioperative competencies and educational needs for improving competencies according to the clinical ladder. A total of 318 OR nurses in Korean tertiary hospitals were recruited. Data from the self-reported questionnaire of perioperative competencies, measured on a five-point Likert scale, were used. The average score of perioperative competence was 3.78 ± 0.54; among the sub-categories of competencies were collaboration (4.08 ± 0.55), foundational knowledge and skills (3.98 ± 0.56), proficiency (3.87 ± 0.64), empathy (3.77 ± 0.77), professional development (3.65 ± 0.64), and leadership (3.34 ± 0.89). There were significant differences in perioperative competencies according to the clinical ladder as follows: foundational knowledge and skills (p < 0.001), leadership (p < 0.001), collaboration (p = 0.017), proficiency (p < 0.001), and professional development (p < 0.001). The educational needs for foundational knowledge and skills (4.43 ± 0.60) were highest, and educational needs for proficiency (4.26 ± 0.70), collaboration (4.21 ± 0.77), leadership (4.08 ± 0.81), empathy (3.99 ± 0.91), and professional development (3.91 ± 0.76) were noted. The educational needs for improving perioperative competencies by clinical ladder showed a significant difference in leadership (p = 0.026), proficiency (p = 0.045), and professional development (p = 0.002). In order to develop an effective education program for OR nurses, differentiated education designs that reflect perioperative competencies and educational needs per clinical ladder are necessary.

Relationships between Willingness to Participate in the Nursing Clinical Ladder Program and Its Related Factors among Clinical Nurses

“…This finding is consistent with that reported by Juang [ 9 ]. In addition, nurses with a higher score in the sense of achievement section were more willing to participate in the program, which is consistent with the finding of Shin et al [ 22 ]. Regarding stress derived from the promotion assessment, the case report writing item had the highest score, suggesting that this was the primary source of stress affecting nurses’ willingness to participate.…”

“…Some studies suggested that nurses recognize the effectiveness of the clinical ladder program in enhancing professional competence [ 1 , 9 ]. Other studies highlighted that when job levels were divided based on personal ability, nurses’ clinical experience and abilities were not only recognized, giving them a sense of belonging, but on a personal level, nurses also obtained a sense of achievement [ 9 , 22 ]. Juang [ 9 ] found that nurses felt a sense of achievement when participating in the clinical ladder program, and that advancing their professional competence and receiving approval and respect were particularly important.…”

Psychometric validation of the Perceived Perioperative Competence Scale‐Revised Short Form

“…As a result, perioperative nurses who did not participate may have a different perspective and experience of perceived perioperative competence from those who did. However, our results show similar findings when larger samples (Gillespie et al, 2012; Jaensson et al, 2018) and smaller samples are used (Blomberg et al, 2019; Shin & Kim, 2021; Sönmez & Ayoğlu, 2019).…”

“…Finally, in addition to the fit statistics indicating acceptable fit above prespecified cut‐offs supporting the construct validity of the scale, convergent and criterion validity was also met, where we found statistically significant associations for those with higher PPC‐R‐SF scores, also reported higher general self‐efficacy, have more experience in the OR, hold a postgraduate level of education and had received perioperative speciality training in the past 3 years. Similar findings of perceived competence have been reported in other research (Blomberg et al, 2019; Falk‐Brynhildsen et al, 2019; Gillespie et al, 2018; Jaensson et al, 2018; Shin & Kim, 2021; Sönmez & Ayoğlu, 2019), which was why these were considered as criteria to examine.…”

“…Similar findings of perceived competence have been reported in other research (Blomberg et al, 2019;Falk-Brynhildsen et al, 2019;Gillespie et al, 2018;Jaensson et al, 2018;Shin & Kim, 2021;Sönmez & Ayoğlu, 2019), which was why these were considered as criteria to examine.…”