Education on Vaccination Competence: an Intensive Course for Skillful Health Science Students.

Background: Vaccination is one of the most successful and cost-effective interventions for public health. Studies have shown that health professionals who have good knowledge and positive attitudes towards vaccination are more likely to provide effective vaccination protection to people, including themselves. Therefore, health science students must acquire evidence-based knowledge during their education to meet the challenges of healthcare. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge, attitudes and feedback of health science students who participated in the Educating Vaccination Competence (EDUVAC) Intensive Course. Methods: A five-day Intensive Course was implemented for health science students, which included a pre-assignment. The EDUVAC Intensive Course used different teaching methods (lectures, workshops, interactive games, discussions), group work, study visits, and cultural programs to encourage students' motivation. For the purpose of the study, students filled out an online questionnaire after giving informed consent. Results: Sample consisted of 31 health science students from five European Higher Institutions. They had very good knowledge on most knowledge questions. In the post measurement it was significantly greater and equal to 81%, p<0.001. Almost all students (93.5%) totally agreed that "It is important for adults to receive all recommended vaccines according to national guidelines". The statement "I have had an active attitude and participation in the Intensive Course" received 80.6% total agreement. Over 90.3% rated the Intensive Course as "excellent" or "above average". Conclusions: After completing the EDUVAC Intensive Course, students felt confident in their vaccination knowledge and skills, which benefited their professional development.

Defining competencies for nurse anaesthetists: A Delphi study.

AIM: To define the competencies of nurse anaesthetists in the hospitals of Catalonia on the basis of their clinical practice through a consensus-building process. DESIGN: We used the Delphi method to determine consensus among a group of 16 nurse anaesthetists. METHODS: Between February and June 2020, we administered a questionnaire of 142 questions distributed among seven domains: expert, communicator, collaborator, manager, health advocate, scholar and professional. Two rounds were conducted. RESULTS: In round 1, 18 competencies were discarded and nine had inconclusive results. Eighteen competencies were proposed by participants. The nine competencies with inconclusive results and the 18 newly proposed competencies were considered in round 2. In round 2, three of these 27 competencies tested were discarded, and consensus was reached on the other 24. CONCLUSION: Health education and the empowerment of the patient and family are fundamental pillars in the practice of nurse anaesthetists in Spain, especially in pre-anaesthetic assessment and pain care. These areas of practice can help define competencies in other countries where the profession of nurse anaesthetist is less developed. IMPACT: The lack of regulation of the competencies of nurse anaesthetists leads to great variability in training and practice. The results can help in their standardization in Spain and in other countries lacking regulation. Our approach can also help policymakers and hospital administrators in health systems that are undergoing the process of regulation. The regulation of the competencies of nurse anaesthetists will allow them to contribute their expertise to the health-illness continuum, increasing safety and improving the quality of care.

Worldwide prevalence of inadequate work ability among hospital nursing personnel: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: To estimate the worldwide pooled prevalence of inadequate work ability among hospital nursing personnel using the Work Ability Index (WAI). DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted on Medline/PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Scielo, PsychInfo, CINAHL, Nursing and Allied Health, LILACS, and Google Scholar from inception to July 2021 to identify observational studies on work ability among hospital nursing personnel using the WAI. Two researchers independently completed the study selection, quality assessments, and data extraction on the prevalence of inadequate work ability that was pooled using the random effects model. Finally, subgroup analyses were performed to explore sources of heterogeneity. FINDINGS: A total of 42 studies were included, consisting of 24,728 subjects worldwide from 14 countries. Of these, 35 studies were included in the meta-analytical analyses. The worldwide pooled prevalence of inadequate work ability among hospital nursing personnel was 24.7% (95% CI = 20.2%-29.4%). High levels of heterogeneity were detected in all studies. Prevalence was higher in studies where samples were composed of nurses and nursing assistive personnel (26.8%; 95% CI = 22.4%-31.5%) than in those of nurses alone (22.2%; 95% CI = 13.1%-32.9%) and in studies where the sample was over 40 (28.1%; 95% CI = 19.5%-37.5%) than in those with a sample under that age (22.4%; 95% CI = 15.8%-29.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Almost one in four members of hospital nursing staff in the world has inadequate work ability and therefore are at risk of several negative outcomes during their working life. These prevalence data correspond to the pre-pandemic period, so new studies should also be especially useful in quantifying the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on work ability in the hospital nursing workforce. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The above findings justify the launch of initiatives that include annual assessment for the early identification of inadequate work ability, offering the possibility of anticipated corrective measures. Nursing workforce older than 40 years and those belonging to the professional category of nursing assistive personnel should be priority target groups for screening and intervention to improve work ability.

Critical care nursing interventions and the time required for their completion in Intensive Care Units: A Delphi study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine which interventions within the Nursing Interventions Classification are most often applied in intensive care units and to validate the time required for each. METHODOLOGY: A three-stage e-Delphi was conducted; 21 panelists were recruited, seven manager nurses and 14 clinical nurses with higher degrees and more than five years experience in intensive care nursing. The first round explored the most common interventions applied. Additionally, panelists were asked to propose others. In the second round, participants reflected on the interventions where no consensus was reached as well as to estimate the time required for each intervention. In the third, panelists were queried about the time required for the interventions for which consensus regarding the time was not reached. RESULTS: A total of 183 interventions were included; 50% of the "Physiological: Complex" domain. The list included 52 (90%) of the 58 "core interventions for critical care nursing" identified in the Nursing Interventions Classification. The time required for 89.1% of the interventions was the same as in the Nursing Interventions Classification seminal work recommendations. CONCLUSION: Results provide a clear picture of nursing activity in general intensive care units, allows to tailor the Nursing Intervetions Classification in Catalonia context and to confirm findings of previous studies.