title: The effects of a deliberate practice program on nursing students' perception of clinical competence.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  New nursing graduates' readiness for practice often does not meet the requirements needed in the real situation of clinical sites. Therefore, nurse education has placed more emphasis on developing students' technical skills to cultivate proficiencies needed for clinical sites.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To develop a program including deliberate skill practices and technical skill testing, each conducted before students' clinical practicum, and to examine the program's effects on nursing students' clinical competence.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was a repeated measure correlational design.
  
  
  METHODS
  One nursing university.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two-hundred-fifty-six and 266 nursing students in a RN-to-BSN night school program in Taiwan completed pretest and posttest surveys, respectively in 2009 and 2010. Their mean age was 22.61 years and had worked 12.75 months as a nurse.
  
  
  METHODS
  Students were asked to participate in the deliberate nursing practice program, which includes skill practice and tests, before their last clinical practicum. The Clinical Competence Questionnaire was used to measure the outcome of deliberate practice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Findings indicated that participants who had nursing work experience, a higher grade point average, practiced their skills by watching videos, and higher pretest competence scores exhibited significantly higher posttest competence scores. Participants who worked in the operating room/outpatient department, scored higher on self-confidence in clinical performance, and had a higher level of future job stress exhibited significantly lower posttest competence scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although work experience increased clinical competence, working in the operating room/outpatient department where many nursing skills were not performed did not have the effects. In contrast, skill reviews and better performance before practice promoted competence. Attaining motor skill competency is a slow process requiring practices. Thus, providing deliberate skill-practice program is suggested to help students increase their competence.
authors.affiliation: Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, 2, Chia-pu Rd, West Sec. Pu-tz, Chiayi, Taiwan. srliou5022@gmail.com
authors.forename: Shwu-Ru
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Liou
authors.forename: Chia-Hao
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Hsiu-Min
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Ching-Yu
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Cheng
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003162:Competency-Based Education / Q000379:methods*; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009048:Motor Skills; D011214:Practice, Psychological; D015397:Program Evaluation; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013624:Taiwan; D014741:Video Recording; D055815:Young Adult