Abstract
Communication is one of the determining factors of healthcare quality; however, a health model that prioritizes clinical over non-technical skills remains prevalent. The aims of this article were: (a) to validate a communication skills scale in a sample of fourth-year nursing degree students from two Spanish universities and (b) determine their perception of communication skills. The study included 289 fourth-year nursing undergraduate students with a mean age of 22.7 (SD = 4.87) years; 81.7% were female. The Health Professionals Communication Skills Scale (HP-CSS) questionnaire was adapted for use among nursing students. We analysed the psychometric properties and relationships with the variable attitudes toward communication skills. The HP-CSS showed a high internal consistency (0.88) and good fit of data to the model (TLI = 0.98; CFI = 0.97; RMSEA = 0.05 [95% CI = 0.04–0.06]). The total score and subscale scores correlated with the variable attitude towards communication skills. High scores were obtained for the students’ perception of communication skills. The HP-CSS is a valid and reliable tool to assess the communication skills in nursing students. This scale provides university teachers with a rapid and easily applied instrument to assess the level of communication skills and relationship with patients.
Highlights
Health care has undergone profound structural and technological transformations since the second half of the 20th century
No significant differences were found between the different socio-demographic variables and the communication skills perceived by the students
An adequate fit of data to the structure was observed for the model with the aforementioned correlated errors: chi-square = 220.613; df = 130; Tucker–Lewis Index (TLI) = 0.98, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.97, and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.05
Summary
Health care has undergone profound structural and technological transformations since the second half of the 20th century. These include the gradual introduction of the concept of person-centred care [1]. It has been reported that healthcare professionals are becoming more technically competent; while their training in non-technical skills, including interpersonal skills such as team work or communication [4], are seldom taught [5]. Communication is an essential element of daily nursing practice and a key determinant of the quality of their care [7], this is not always recognized by nurses themselves [8].
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