Nurse engagement in QI is limited, study finds

Leaders should implement strategies to increase nurse engagement in quality improvement to attain high-quality outcomes, a study found. Published in the August issue of the American Journal of Nursing, the study of 6,351 front-line nurses and nurse leaders at 66 sites nationwide sought to identify the self-perceived QI engagement and competence levels of front-line nurses and nurse leaders and to compare differences in QI competence. They found front-line nurse engagement in QI is limited. While nurses’ knowledge levels appear to be high, they demonstrated limited competency in QI-related skills, possibly contributing to low QI engagement. Nurse leaders scored significantly higher in engagement and competence compared to the front-line nurses they manage.