Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science

Korean society of Biological Nursing Science (한국기초간호학회)
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Impact of grit, empathy, and communication competence on the clinical competence of nursing students in the post-COVID-19 era in Korea: a cross-sectional study

  • Soo-Hyun Nam (Department of Nursing, Andong National University) ;
  • Seurk Park (Department of Nursing, Andong National University)
  • Received : 2024.12.13
  • Accepted : 2025.02.04
  • Published : 2025.02.28
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Abstract

Purpose: This study investigated the relationships among grit, empathy, communication competence, and clinical competence in nursing students and aimed to determine the factors influencing their clinical competence during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Methods: The participants were 157 third- and fourth-year nursing students from Andong National University in Andong and Choonhae College of Health Sciences in Ulsan, both in South Korea. Data were collected using a self-report questionnaire and analyzed using the SPSS version 23.0 program. Results: Clinical competence was positively correlated with grit (r = .26, p = .001), empathy (r = .29, p < .001) and communication competence (r = .53, p < .001). Women, sex (β = -.20, p = .009) was found to predict nursing students' clinical competence, explaining a portion of the variance in clinical competence (F = 7.07, p < .001). Conclusion: The results imply that nursing students' communication competence must be increased to improve their clinical competence. Additionally, it is important to develop training programs that consider changes in the educational environment in the post-COVID-19 era.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

We would like to thank all the nursing students who participated in this study.

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