Critical thinking skill and associated factors among Nurses working at tertiary hospitals in southwest Part of ethiopia, 2022

Abstract

Background: Critical thinking skill is one of the basic competencies of nursing practice and is associated with the provision of quality nursing care. Even though nurses are required to learn and implement critical thinking skills to conduct their work effectively and efficiently, a significant proportion of nurses still lack the required level of critical thinking skills. Objective: To assess nurses' level of critical thinking skills and associated factors at tertiary hospitals in the Southwestern part of Ethiopia, in 2022. Method: An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among nurses working at three tertiary hospitals in the Southwest part of Ethiopia from July, 20 to August 20, 2022. About 422 nurses were included in the study using a simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire. Multivariable linear regression analysis was used to determine factors significantly associated with critical thinking skills and a p-value of less than 0.05 was taken as statistically significant. The results were presented with text, tables, and graphs. Result: Out of the 422 participants, 406 (96.2% response rate) of them returned distributed questionnaires and 399 questionnaires were analyzed while seven questionnaires were excluded because of missing data. Nearly half 196(49.1%) of the participants have a moderate level and 73 (18.3%) have a high level of critical thinking skills. Being a BSc degree holder (β=0.230, p=0.000) or MSc degree holder (β=0.303, p=0.001), following scientific publications (β=0.298, p=0.000), participating in scientific activities (β=0.305, p=0.000), working at outpatient department (β=0.105, p=0.025), being nurse manager (β =0.201, p=0.000), and taking capacity building training (β= 0.158, p=0.000) were associated with critical thinking skills of nurses. Conclusion: The majority of nurses demonstrated a low and moderate level of critical thinking skills. Educational level, following scientific publications to update oneself on clinical practice, participation in scientific activities, working department/unit, working position, and taking capacity-building training were significantly associated with the level of critical thinking skills. It is necessary to arrange in-service training and educational opportunities for nurses to improve their critical thinking skills