title: Cardiac nursing: achieving competent practitioners.
abstract: This paper describes how competency statements were integrated into an academic framework to provide a transparent yet flexible career pathway for the nurse working in acute cardiac care. Nurses are expanding and developing their roles and use wide ranging skills and knowledge to care for patients. Additionally, models of care delivery are changing and patients are cared for in a variety of settings. Where evidence exists, these models demonstrate improvement in the provision and quality of services and contribute to improved quality of life, maximise medication and therapy and reduce waiting times for investigations. However, whilst many studies have demonstrated benefit, translating these results into routine practice requires skilled nurses who are "fit for purpose," and to support this, professional competencies can be used to measure competence in practice whilst informing educational initiatives. This paper outlines the development of competency statements that identify the knowledge and skills required for safe, effective and competent care and direct the cardiac nurse acquire skills and knowledge in a focused and coherent way.
authors.affiliation: Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, Sydney Street, London SW3-6NP, UK. j.riley@rbh.nthames.nhs.uk
authors.forename: Jillian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.forename: Lyndell
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Brodie
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shuldham
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002322:Career Mobility; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D003479:Curriculum; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D004650:Employee Performance Appraisal; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000451:nursing*; D006801:Humans; D017145:Models, Educational; D016294:Models, Nursing; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009720:Nurse Clinicians / Q000193:education* / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000523:psychology; D024802:Nurse's Role; D015402:Nursing Education Research; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D017009:Professional Autonomy; D013041:Specialties, Nursing / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom