Korean J Health Promot.  2012 Mar;12(1):40-46.

Nurses' Clinical Competence and Its Relationship with Perception of and Compliance with Standard Precautions

• Tae SH
• Hwang EH

Abstract

BACKGROUND
The purpose of this study was to investigate nurses' clinical competence and its relationship with perception of and compliance with standard precautions.
METHODS
From January 12 to January 20, 2011, a total of 134 nurses working at a university hospital in Gyeonggi province completed a structured questionnaire on clinical competence and perception of and compliance with standard precautions. The data were analyzed with independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation analysis.
RESULTS
The mean score for clinical competence was 3.53, and showed significant differences according to age, gender, education level, marital status, monthly income, and years of experience. The mean scores for perception of and compliance with standard precautions were 4.67 and 4.00 respectively. Perception of standard precautions showed a significant difference according to years of experience. There were significant positive correlations among clinical competence and perception (r=0.234, P=0.007), clinical competence and compliance (r=0.363, P<0.001), and perception and compliance (r=0.406, P<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
To improve nurses' compliance with standard precautions educational and administrative policies to improve clinical competence should be considered.

Keyword

Clinical competence; Compliance; Infection control; Precaution

MeSH Terms

Clinical Competence
Compliance
Infection Control
Marital Status