Abstract
Objectives: This study aimed to clarify the experiences and subjective attainment level (attainment level) of nursing skills among nursing students during clinical practice, as well as the factors influencing attainment levels to identify strategies to improve these levels.
Methods: A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted among nursing students before their graduation. The survey collected data on attributes, whether they had clinical experience of 29 fundamental nursing skills in clinical practice, the number of such experiences, and their attainment levels of these skills. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze participant attributes and the number of experiences. The Mann–Whitney U-test was used to compare the attainment level and the number of experiences. Factors influencing attainment level were analyzed by discriminant analysis.
Results: The study included 300 nursing students. The experience rate and attainment level for vital signs measurement were 100%; however, the experience rates for seven other nursing skills, including assistance with toileting, were 50% or less. The factors most influencing the attainment levels were as follows: prior experience for 23 nursing skills, presence of a hospital affiliated to the nursing education institutions for two skills, and the nurse’s gender for one skill. The attainment levels for all nursing skills markedly improved when the skills were experienced three or more times.
Conclusion: The factors that most influenced the attainment levels of nursing students differed between the skills being assessed. The results suggest that the attainment level could be improved by ensuring that the student nurses experience fundamental nursing skills at least three times during clinical practice.
