Measuring the Physician-Nurse Collaboration: Reliability and Validity of the Japanese Version of Collaborative Practice Scales

Abstract

This study aimed to examine collaborative practice between physicians and nurses in Japanese hospitals. The Collaborative Practice Scales (CPS) developed by Weiss & Davis (1985) was translated into Japanese. A self-administered questionnaire survey by using the Japanese version of CPS was conducted on 520 physicians and 2,139 nurses at four hospitals in four prefectures, and data from 275 physicians and 1,678 nurses who completed the Japanese version of CPS were analyzed (valid response rates of 52.9% and 78.4%, respectively). The Cronbach's alpha of the Japanese version of CPS were over 0.9 for total scores, 0.84-0.88 for subscales. Factor analysis confirmed that the factorial structure of the Japanese version of CPS for nurses was almost consistent with the original version. As for physicians, it was slightly different from the original version. Although the validity of subscales for physicians requires further investigation, the total scores of CPS could be utilized for measuring collaborative practice between physicians and nurses. The results showed the CPS total scores of our subjects were low in comparison with those of previous studies in the United States. The CPS total scores of physicians were related to their specialties and those of nurses, to their qualifications and positions. Further investigation into factors influencing collaborative practice is required for physicians. For nurses, it is necessary to develop their communication skills.