Self-Assessed Competence of Experienced Expatriate Nurses in a Rural and Remote Setting

Abstract

We aimed to measure the self-assessed level of competence among nurses working in the public hospitals of Al-Gharbia Region, a remote rural region of United Arab Emirates, and to explore the factors associated with the nurses' self-perceived competency. The Nurse Competency Scale, which measures the self-assessed level of competency of nurses, has been validated in a variety of clinical settings, in facilities of various sizes, and in small and large cohorts. However, its application among an expatriate nursing workforce working in small hospitals and health facilities in remote and rural areas has not been examined. We used the Nurse Competency Scale to survey the nursing workforce in Al-Gharbia's public hospitals in United Arab Emirates. All 435 practicing registered nurses with more than 3 months clinical experience in the network were invited to participate. Data were collected electronically and analyzed by international collaborators. Statistical analysis included analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis, multiple linear regression, 2 test of independence, and Cronbach's a. Totally, 189 responses were analyzed (43.4% response rate). Overall self-assessed levels of competence were uniformly ''very good'' across all competence categories. The overall score (84.3) was higher than those found in most other studies. Frequency of use was the most outstanding variable influencing self-assessed competence. Total years of experience were the next significant variable. Some items of the scale were not yet applicable to activities in the region, particularly those relating to supervision of students. The high scores achieved by expatriate nurses in the small hospitals of Al-Gharbia reflect well on the rigor of the recruitment process, ongoing cross-training and functional competency assessment. Policies and practices aimed at recruiting experienced expatriate nurses and providing opportunities to use competencies continue to be critical in providing a quality nursing service in a rural and remote region.The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has a high-quality health-care system, characterized by well-equipped, well-staffed, licensed hospitals; qualified and licensed health-care providers; and universal medical insurance coverage. The competency of nurses is taken seriously, with high stakes (including legal and immigration consequences) for malpractice. This study investigated self-assessed competence among an expatriate nursing workforce in Al-Gharbia, the geographically largest and least populated region in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. In part, it represents an effort to find a relevant, useful, and practical assessment tool that may assist in maintaining high standards of nursing competency

Internationally qualified nurse communication—A qualitative cross country study

“…The UAE is heavily dependent on foreign nurses (El‐Haddad, ), with Emirati nurses comprising only 4% of the nursing workforce. As the UAE will need 8,510 new RNs by 2025 (US‐UAE Business Council, , September), there is a need to recruit and retain skilled, competent and experienced RNs internationally (Aqtash et al, ).…”

A survey of clinical competence of new nurses working in emergency department in Iran: A descriptive, cross‐sectional study

“…A similar study conducted in South Africa ( (Hassankhani et al, 2017). Also, there is a relationship between perceived competence and frequency of use of a specific competence (Aqtash et al, 2017;Hengstberger-Sims et al, 2008).…”

Psychometric evaluation of the Nurse Competence Scale: A cross‐sectional study

“…A recent systematic review reported that the NCS is the most widely used instrument to assess generic competence at varying stages of nurses' careers, from students, new graduates, to more experienced nurses (Flinkman et al, ). In the present review, researchers showed that the NCS has been utilized in 30 studies in various countries and translated in different languages; for instance, in Australia (Lima, Newall, Jordan, Hamilton, & Kinney, ), Norway (Wangensteen, Johansson, & Nordström, ), Sweden (Karlstedt, Wadensten, Fagerberg, & Pöder, ), the United Arab Emirates (Aqtash et al, ), and USA (Delaney, Friedman, Dolansky, & Fitzpatrick, ). Although the NCS has been evaluated mostly in terms of its psychometric properties, information about such properties on the translated version is scarce (Flinkman et al, ).…”