Role transition from education to practice and its impact on the career futures of Omani nurses

The relationship between practical skills confidence and readiness for transition to practice among nursing internship students: Exploring the mediating role of preceptorship

BACKGROUND

The transition from nursing student to practitioner can be a difficult and stressful period marked by a lack of confidence and practical skills. To bridge this theory-practice gap and ensure successful integration into the workforce, preceptorship programs are essential. By providing experienced mentors and role models, preceptors can equip new nurses with the necessary skills, boost their confidence, and ultimately contribute to a smoother transition and a more prepared nursing workforce.

AIM

Examine the relationship between practical skills confidence and readiness for transition to practice among nursing internship students through exploring the mediating role of preceptorship.

DESIGN

This was a descriptive correlational study.

PARTICIPANTS

A convenience sample of 100 internship nursing students from College of Nursing at a selected governmental University in Riyadh were included in the study.

METHODS

The study participants responded to an electronic Casey-Fink Graduate Nurse Experience Survey validated survey. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to explore results and examine the relationships between study variables.

RESULTS

About half of the study sample (53 %) had low level of perception regarding the role transition experience with a mean score of 3.01 ± 0.39. As well as more than two thirds of the participated internship nursing students (62 %) had a moderate level of perception regarding the preceptorship role with a mean score of 3.13 ± 0.57. Furthermore, more than half of the study participants (57 %) had high confidence in their practical skills with a mean score of 2.12 ± 0.48. In addition, the study results verified that there was a highly significant correlation between the internship nursing students' practical skills confidence, their readiness for transition to practice and role of preceptorship (P < 0.001). According to the SEM, internship nursing students' perception regarding preceptorship role accounted for 98 % of the variance in internship nursing students transition to practice and 88 % of the variance in their confidence level of their practical skills.

CONCLUSION

Internship nursing students' perception regarding the role of preceptorship regarding is an important predictor of the success of their transition to practice and it affect on improving their confidence level of their practical skills.

Readiness for professional practice among health professions education graduates: a systematic review

Readiness to practice is the state of being prepared and capable of engaging in professional activities in a specific field. Graduates of healthcare professions require a diverse set of skills, knowledge and attitudes to meet the demands of complex healthcare settings. This systematic review provides a comprehensive analysis of readiness for professional practice among graduates of health professions education. It encompasses a wide range of articles published between 2013 and 2024, incorporating various health professions and utilizing a combination of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods designs. The review identified 93 studies from 32 diverse countries. The review revealed that factors influencing readiness to practice, include individual capabilities, the workplace context, and educational provision. It also explored strategies to enhance readiness to practice. The findings underscore the significance of addressing challenges such as lack of confidence, stress, communication, time management, job satisfaction, clinical experience, academic workload, teaching quality, mentorship and curriculum design. This comprehensive analysis serves as a valuable resource for healthcare educators, policymakers, and practitioners seeking to optimize the preparedness of graduates for the complexities of contemporary healthcare environments. Future studies should explore the interactions between readiness to practice stakeholders' perception of the educational curriculum, and the quality of support in the professional practice environment.

Psychometric Properties of the Chinese Version of the Gratitude at Work Scale in Employed Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND

The Gratitude at Work Scale, originally developed by American scholars, has been widely administered to mental health professionals and human service workers to explore gratitude in the workplace. No Chinese-language instrument is currently available for assessing workplace gratitude.

PURPOSES

The aims of this study were to (a) translate the original English version of the Gratitude at Work Scale into a traditional Chinese version (TC-GAWS), confirm its factor structure, and analyze its psychometric properties among newly employed nurses and (b) develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of the TC-GAWS short form.

METHODS

A psychometric study using a cross-sectional web-based design was conducted in Taiwan. Three hundred twenty-two employed nurses completed a battery of self-administered online questionnaires that included a demographic datasheet, the Gratitude Questionnaire-Six-Item Form, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10, and the Thoughts of Quitting Scale. IBM SPSS 24.0 and AMOS 28.0 were used for data analysis, and Cronbach's alpha and Pearson's correlation were used to assess reliability and concurrent validity. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were conducted.

RESULTS

The internal consistency and stability of the TC-GAWS total scale were .88 and .91, respectively. The exploratory factor analysis showed a satisfactory Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin value of .88 and a Bartlett's test value of 654.01 ( p < .001), suggesting that 64.55% of the total variance was explained by the two-factor TC-GAWS. After item reduction, the CFA of the six remaining items of the TC-GAWS short form revealed adequate fit statistics for a two-factor structure and a second-order factor. Strong correlations were found between the 10-item and six-item TC-GAWS ( r > .94) in the two samples, suggesting good concurrent validity. The overall scores for the 10-item and six-item TC-GAWS had similar convergent validity, with moderate-to-strong correlations for the Gratitude Questionnaire-Six-Item Form ( r = .45 and .540), Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 ( r = .49 and .51), and Thoughts of Quitting Scale ( r = -.57 and -.53). The CFA yielded a two-factor, six-item model that exhibited good fit with the latent constructs of χ 2 / df = 11.06/8 = 1.38, p = .198, comparative fit index = .996, goodness-of-fit index = .979, root mean square error of approximation = .045, root mean square residual = .030, and standardized root mean squared residual = .023.

CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Both the 10- and six-item TC-GAWS instruments demonstrated good reliability and validity in nurse participants. The TC-GAWS may be used to measure gratitude in nurses in the workplace. This instrument has the potential to facilitate a better understanding of gratitude in nurses, which may be applied to the improvement of nursing management, research, and education.

Nurse Interns' Perception of Clinical Preparation and Readiness for Clinical Internship Experiences

Background

As nursing interns enter challenging clinical settings, evaluating their preparation and readiness is vital for adaptation success. Sufficient real-world experience and patient care are crucial preparation components that enable effective practice and higher competencies.

Aim

This study aimed to assess nurse interns' perception of clinical preparation and readiness for clinical internship experiences.

Methods

A self-administered questionnaire was distributed, comprising three sections on demographics, clinical preparation requirements, and the Casey-Fink Readiness for Practice Survey. Descriptive statistics as the mean and standard deviation, numbers and percentages, linear regression model, and Pearson correlation coefficient were used for reporting normal distribution, categorical variables, and relationship between a scalar response and one or more explanatory variables and to calculate statistics between two continuous variables.

Results

The participants were 130 nurse interns who were involved in an internship between 2016 and 2020, 50% of the nurse interns. They had a moderate level of clinical preparation, and 28.5% of them exhibited a low level. In addition, 53.8% were found to be moderately ready for practice, while 22.3% had a low level of readiness.

Conclusion

The observed significant positive correlation between perceived preparation and readiness underscores the pivotal role of clinical preparation in influencing practice readiness. Implications. These findings emphasize the importance of targeted interventions aimed at enhancing clinical preparation to directly bolster overall readiness for professional practice among nurse interns.

The effects of clinical learning environment and career adaptability on resilience: A mediating analysis based on a survey of nursing interns

BACKGROUND

The resilience education of intern nursing students has significant implications for the development and improvement of the nursing workforce. The clinical internship period is a critical time for enhancing resilience.

AIMS

To evaluate the resilience level of Chinese nursing interns and explore the effects of factors affecting resilience early in their careers, focusing on the mediating roles of career adaptability between clinical learning environment and resilience.

METHODS

The cross-sectional study design was adopted. From March 2022 to May 2023, 512 nursing interns in tertiary care hospitals were surveyed online with the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, the Clinical Learning Environment Scale for Nurse and the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale. Structural equation modelling was used to clarify the relationships among these factors. Indirect effects were tested using bootstrapped confidence intervals.

RESULTS

The nursing interns showed a moderately high level of resilience [M (SD) = 70.15 (19.90)]. Gender, scholastic attainment, scholarship, career adaptability and clinical learning environment were influencing factors of nursing interns' resilience. Male interns with good academic performance showed higher levels of resilience. Career adaptability and clinical learning environment positively and directly affected their resilience level (β = 0.62, 0.18, respectively, p < .01). Career adaptability was also positively affected by the clinical learning environment (β = 0.36, p < .01), and mediated the effect of clinical learning environment on resilience (β = 0.22, p < .01).

CONCLUSION

Clinical learning environment can positively affect the resilience level of nursing interns. Career adaptability can affect resilience directly and also play a mediating role between clinical learning environment and resilience. Thus, promotion of career adaptability and clinical teaching environment should be the potential strategies for nursing interns to improve their resilience, especially for female nursing interns with low academic performance.

What influences newly graduated registered nurses' intention to leave the nursing profession? An integrative review

BACKGROUND

Newly graduated registered nurses leaving the nursing profession in the early stages of their career have enormous financial and time implications for nursing organizations and affect the quality of nursing care.

OBJECTIVE

To identify the factors influencing newly graduated registered nurses' intention to leave the nursing profession over the past 10 years.

METHODS

The framework developed by Whittemore and Knafl was used to conduct this integrative review. An electronic search was conducted for English articles to identify research studies published between 2011-2022 using the following databases of PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Scopus. Eligible publications were critically reviewed and scored using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program Checklist and the Center for Evidence-Based Management appraisal.

RESULTS

Twenty-one studies were analyzed. The main factors affecting newly graduated registered nurses' intention to leave the nursing profession included demographic factors (age, educational level, year of experience, professional title, employment status, health status, shift, hospital location and size), supervisor and peer support, challenges in the workplace, cognitive and affective response to work, work environment (collegial nurse-physician relations, insufficient staffing level, person-work environment fit), gender stereotypes, autonomous motivation, role models, and resilience.

CONCLUSIONS

The factors affecting newly graduated registered nurses' intention to leave the nursing profession are multifaceted and should receive continuous attention from nurse managers. The findings provide more comprehensive for nurse administrators to develop intervention strategies to mitigate newly graduated registered nurses' turnover intention.

Safety Behavior and Transition Shock among Newly Graduated Nurses: The Mediating Role of Feedback-Seeking Behavior

Aim

To determine the relationship between transition shock and safety behavior among newly graduated nurses (NGNs) and explore the mediating role of feedback-seeking behavior.

Background

The safety behavior of NGNs plays a vital role in improving patient safety in clinical situations. The direct effect of the transition shock experienced by these nurses on safety behavior remains limited, and little is known about the mediating effect of feedback-seeking behavior.

Methods

A descriptive correlational research design was conducted with a cross-sectional sample of nurses in China using an online survey. A convenience sample of 575 nurses from 17 hospitals completed the questionnaires. Correlation analysis and structural equation modeling were used to examine the hypotheses.

Results

The sampled NGNs' safety behavior score was 55.35 ± 5.46. Their transition shock was negatively associated with safety behavior (β = -0.225, p < 0.001). In contrast, feedback-seeking behavior was positively related to safety behavior (β = 0.502, p < 0.001). The feedback-seeking behavior partially mediated the relationship between transition shock and safety behavior, and the mediating effect was 58.29%.

Conclusions

The results emphasized that the relationship between NGNs' transition shock and safety behavior is mediated by feedback-seeking behavior. Implications for Nursing Management. Interventions focusing on transition shock relief could help improve NGNs' safety behavior. This study highlights the importance of encouraging feedback-seeking behavior to improve patient safety outcomes, especially for junior nurses. It can therefore be assumed that the nursing managers' training of NGNs in special skills, such as feedback-seeking, may be conducive to their positive coping and contribute to forming safety behaviors.