P0680 / #1208: IMPROVEMENT IN SELF-REPORTED COMPETENCE AND CONFIDENCE AFTER A PICU NURSING SKILLS FAIR

Abstract

Aims & Objectives: There has been extensive investigation of self-rated competence and confidence in physician medical education. However, there are few studies evaluating its utility in nursing education and none in pediatric critical care medicine. Our objective was to determine whether there was improved self-reported competence and/or confidence in the areas of daily tasks, chest tubes, EVDs, diabetic ketoacidosis and bag valve mask ventilation following a mandatory nursing skills fair. Methods: All pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) nurses completed a questionnaire distributed before and after an educational skills fair. Nurses ranked their competence and confidence on a 4 point scale (1-very competent/confident to 4 not competent/confident) for each of the areas of interest. Data were all deidentified prior to analysis. Statistical analysis utilized t-test. Results: Sixty-nine nurses participated in the skills fair. Average PICU experience was 66.21 months (0-336 months) in the cohort. There was no difference in self-reported competence and confidence as a group. Subdivided by PICU experience, those with ≤ 36 months experience(n=36) reported significantly less competence and confidence in all areas queried when compared to those with >36 months(n=33.) Self-reported competence and confidence significantly improved in all, but the less experienced nurses continued to report less competence and confidence than their colleagues at the end of the day (Figure 1.)Conclusions: Less experienced nurses reported less perceived competence and confidence than their more experienced colleagues prior to the skills fair. Overall, both groups reported improvement following the exercise. These data highlight areas that may be utilized to improve nursing education and patient care.