Developing and validating the nursing presence scale for hospitalized patients

AIM: We developed and psychometrically tested the Nursing Presence Scale. BACKGROUND: Nursing presence is a foundation for professional nursing practice; therefore, it is critical to measure this concept. INTRODUCTION: This instrument development study was designed to generate an itemized scale and psychometric testing using a sample of Iranian patients. METHODS: Based on both a concept development and literature review, and finally face and content validity 44-item draft scale was generated. During November 2018–2019, 774 patients were surveyed. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to evaluate the scale’s construct validity; concurrent and predictive reliability of the nursing presence scale were also evaluated. We also examine the weighting to scale items. RESULTS: The analyses yielded a 36-item, 4-factor scale that adequately fit the data. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the whole instrument was 0.94. The intra class correlation coefficient was 0.91. Nursing Presence Scale scores were positively correlated with Revised Humane Caring Scale and predicted 25% of missed nursing care. CONCLUSION: This 36-item has good reliability and validity, making it useful for measuring the current condition of nursing presence. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY: Measuring the frequency of nursing presence allows for data-driven planning and upgrading the inpatient care services.