Indicators for competent nursing practice.
OBJECTIVE
This paper identifies and classifies indicators for competent nursing practice and validates these indicators in a variety of settings. Descriptive data to address competent practice in a variety of settings were collected from staff nurses, head nurses and nursing directors in an acute 1000-bed university hospital in Finland.


METHODS
The data obtained from 25 expert groups were analysed to identify a clinical set of indicators for competent nursing practice from the data. The relevance of this set of indicators in a variety of clinical settings was further validated with a second sample of expert nurses (n = 26). Thereafter, data were analysed to identify generic competencies that were applicable to all clinical working environments.


RESULTS
Twenty-three generic indicators of competent nursing practice were identified in a variety of settings. The findings suggest that these competence indicators are meaningful to nurses with various backgrounds and practice settings.


CONCLUSIONS
Collaboration and coordination, as well as the holistic management of the situation, are highly recognized as meaningful characteristics of competent nursing practice.
Meretoja
Riitta
R
Helsinki University Central Hospital, Finland. riitta.meretoja@hus.fi
Eriksson
Elina
E
Leino-Kilpi
Helena
H
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000592:standards; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005387:Finland; D018939:Holistic Nursing / Q000592:standards; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007587:Job Description; D009718:Nurse Administrators / Q000458:organization & administration; D024802:Nurse's Role; D015403:Nursing Evaluation Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology / Q000592:standards*; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care / Q000145:classification / Q000592:standards*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires