Professional practice ability of ICU nurses in different professional grade

Objective To investigate the current situation of critical care nurses’ professional practice ability in Shantou, Guangdong Province. Methods A total of 255 ICU nurses in Shantou were selected by convenient sampling method and investigated with general information questionnaire, "Critical care nursing Practice activities ability" . Results A total of 214 valid questionnaires were collected in study. ICU nurses used pulmonary artery floating catheter, intra-aortic balloon pump, and caring the patient who had kidney operation were still in a low level condition. The scores of their professional practice ability were 864, 761, and 651, respectively. The nurses had poor professional practice ability except N4 nurses. For example, N4 nurses’ score of professional practice ability in respiratory system is (12.91±3.42), but the scores of N0, N1, N2, and N3 nurses were (18.71±6.04), (16.51±5.74), (18.67±5.50), and (16.52±5.61). The professional practice ability scores of different professional grades were significantly different (all P<0.05) . Conclusions The training for how to use the new technology should be strengthened. N0 and N1 nurses have low professional practice ability, so they should be trained more. N2 and N3 nurses can choose individualized training class according to their own check results of professional practice ability. N4 nurses have high professional practice ability, so they can be teachers and managers at ICU. Key words: Intensive Care Unit; Nurses; Grade; professional practice ability