Perceived Patient Safety Competence of Baccalaureate Nursing Students: A Descriptive Comparative Study

INTRODUCTION: Patient safety is an issue of utmost concern within health care. An interrelated approach between nursing education and practice is needed. For more than a decade, nursing education programs have responded to calls for curricular reform, integrating strategies to prepare graduates for safe nursing practice. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the descriptive study was to examine self-perceived safety competencies among baccalaureate (BSN) nursing students at end of program (n = 72) using the Health Professional Education in Patient Safety Survey. In addition to the objective of describing self-perceived safety competencies of BSN students, another objective was to investigate any significant differences in self-perceived competencies between traditional 4-year and accelerated 12-month program students. METHODS: A descriptive comparative design was used with a purposive sample of baccalaureate nursing students from both traditional and accelerated second-degree programs at a comprehensive university in the Northeast. RESULTS: Students rated self-confidence with patient safety learned in the clinical environment higher than within the classroom setting. Overall, students reported a high level of self-confidence within each of the seven patient safety dimensions with knowledge gained from the clinical setting higher than knowledge gained from the classroom setting. Paired t-test analyses revealed statistically significant differences (p < .05) between self-confidence gained in classroom and clinical environments with communicating effectively and managing safety risks. Independent t-test analyses revealed accelerated students reported lower self-confidence than traditional students, with statistically significant differences (p < .05) in dimensions of culture of safety, working in teams, managing safety risks, and disclosing adverse events/close calls. CONCLUSION: In most patient safety dimensions, students felt confident with their competencies within each of the dimensions of patient safety. Results also revealed that accelerated second-degree students report lower confidence with their knowledge of patient safety gained from classroom and clinical settings. Nursing programs must continue to emphasize a culture of safety within the nursing curriculum.