Abstract
Background: After implementing the Tuning Educational Structures in Europe Project, numerous efforts have been made to define, establish, and evaluate nursing competences. The European Federation of Nurses Association played a key role in enacting the nursing competences included in Directive 2013/55/EU. Nevertheless, assessing competences remains elusive, and there is little research into nurses’ perceptions of the competency training provided by their universities. The purpose of the study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of newly qualified nurses about the competences they acquired during their university education. Methods: A qualitative research study was developed in a Spanish university. Twelve semi-structured interviews with newly qualified nurses were conducted, and two focus groups made up of twelve students were carried out in order to triangulate the results. Participants were recruited through email contact. Interviews focused on clinical training, theoretical content, and the reality of healthcare. Data was analyzed thematically. Results: Two main themes emerged: (1) improving theoretical content and (2) rethinking practical lessons and clinical training. A lack of knowledge about mental health, pharmacology, or critical care has been found; in addition, it was highlighted, among others, the need to improve communication skills in difficult and conflictive situations. Conclusions: Considering the participants’ perception of deficiency in some aspects of most of the competences established by the European Federation of Nurses Association, further research has been suggested to include other stakeholders’ views.
Highlights
The convergence of European Higher Education has been defined as a globalization of knowledge [1] in Europe
In order to fill this knowledge gap, taking into account the European Federation of Nurses Association (EFN) Competency Framework and the recommendations to guarantee higher education quality [4], the purpose of the present paper is to explore and comprehend the perception of newly qualified nurses (NQN) about their competency training and acquisition after they have finished studying at university
The results obtained are framed within the competency areas set out by the EFN Competency Framework [9] (Table 5)
Summary
The convergence of European Higher Education has been defined as a globalization of knowledge [1] in Europe. To contribute to the development of these goals, the Tuning Educational Structures in Europe Project (TESE) [3] agreed to homogenize the activities that the former would be capable of performing. These were divided into generic and subject-specific competences. In 2005, six groups of specific competencies were established for an undergraduate degree in nursing [4]. After implementing the Tuning Educational Structures in Europe Project, numerous efforts have been made to define, establish, and evaluate nursing competences. The purpose of the study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of newly qualified nurses about the competences they acquired during their university education.
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