Nurses’ Clinical Skill Utilisation: An Opinion from Public Health Institutions

Abstract

Background: Nurses are the backbone of health care systems worldwide. In India, the assessment ofexisting knowledge of nursing workforce and the utilization of skills is not evaluated and properly used toensure good quality in health care.Methods : Using the Delphi technique a survey was developed and sent to nurses. Self- rating methods (ona likert scale) were used in order to operationalize the personal skills.Results: Almost half (48%) of the participants have a Bachelor degree. Out of this 27.2% qualified for ahigher education (e.g. Master in related subject). Most nurses (56% in sample were females) are permanentemployed working as staff nurse or nursing officers in the public sector. Among the participants. 20% havesufficient teaching experience between 1 to 3 years. Self-rating of skills was high in almost all topics.Conclusion: Having attained higher education most of the participants remain working as staff nurses.The good self-rating of participants underlines their ability to take over much higher positions andresponsibilities. Moreover, teaching experience is hardly acknowledged by institutions since teaching staffis usually recruited from outside. The study suggests that a majority of the population has an interest to workin rural area .Better work conditions are needed in order to gain workforce in this areas.Skills should be effectively utilized in areas of administration, management, research and education, with aproper distribution to rural and urban areas in order to ensure a good health care system in India.