Development and preliminary validation of a tool to measure nurses’ support for facilitating the learning of others

BackgroundNurses guide and support learning of students and new graduates in the workplace. A plethora of literature exists about learners needs in the workplace however nursing leadership teams also need to support experienced nurses who facilitate others’ learning.AimThis study sought to develop a tool for Registered Nurses’ to report on the support they receive when they facilitate the learning of others.Scale developmentAn extensive literature review identified 28 papers about support RNs need to facilitate learning. Five re-occuring themes pertaining to workload, communication, acknowledgement, teamwork and preparation for role emerged from analysis of these papers. These were verified independently through focus groups. A 30-item instrument was generated based on the themes; further RN focus groups were conducted to ensure clarity of items.Testing of instrumentData were collected from RNs working in medical and surgical areas across three acute care hospitals (ranging from 300 to 750 beds). A total of 372 registered nurses responded. Principle component analysis identified 5 distinct sub scales represented by 17 items with good reliability: workload 0.953; communication 0.847; acknowledgement 0.858; teamwork 0.852; preparation 0.942.ConclusionThis newly developed tool measures Registered Nurses perceptions of support they receive to fulfil their role in supporting the learning of others. The data generated from use of this tool can inform nursing leadership about the effectiveness of existing infrastructure and resources to support RNs.