A STUDY OF TRAUMA NURSING CORE COMPETENCY AMONG STAFF NURSES, VIETNAMESE GENERAL HOSPITALS

Abstract

The objectives of this descriptive research were to assess and to compare trauma nursing core competency (TNCC) among staff nurses at Vietnamese general hospitals. By cluster sampling method, 439 Vietnamese nurses were recruited from 9 hospitals throughout the country. The measurement of TNCC was developed by the researcher based on literature review and expert in-depth interview. The self-rating TNCC scale composed of 8 dimensions with 48 items, the Content Validity Index was .90 and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was .95, respectively. The results were as follows: 1. The overall TNCC level of staff nurses was relatively high ( = 3.01, SD = .37). 2. The level of TNCC of staff nurses were no difference between male and female, among education backgrounds (secondary, college, and bachelor), between trained and not trained, and between rotation and not rotation. 3. The level of TNCC of staff nurses were significant difference among working experience groups (F = 11.73, p = .00), especially between group from one to three years and group over ten years’ experience ( = 2.61, SD = .28 and = 3.10, SD = .35; Sheffé = .00). 4. The level of TNCC of staff nurses were significant difference among work place (F = 9.95, p = .00), especially between ICU and ER ( = 3.23, SD = .31 and = 2.94, SD = .33; Sheffé = .00). In conclusion, this study found a relatively high level of TNCC of staff nurses in Vietnam. It is recommended that the factors influencing TNCC such as continuing education and educational level need to be further explored among staff nurses. And need for an improvement of education programs for this specialty.