Validation of the psychometric properties of the practice environment scale of nursing work index in primary health care in Portugal

Pedro Lucas*, Elvio Jesus*, Sofia Almeida*, Beatriz Araújo*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

19 Citations (Scopus)
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Abstract

Studies related to the work environment in primary health care are scarce in the literature. The present study aimed to validate the psychometric properties of the Practice Environment Scale of Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) in primary health care (PHC) and to evaluate its construct validity through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses in a sample of Portuguese nurses. A quantitative, cross-sectional, and validation study design was implemented. Methods: The sample consisted of 1059 nurses from the PHC units of all 55 health center groups (HCGs) in mainland Portugal, 15 health centers in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, and 6 health centers in the Autonomous Region of the Azores. The study tested different structural models using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis techniques. The reliability of the scale was tested by determining Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Results: The internal consistency of the PES-NWI was 0.91. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed on the PES-NWI model in PHC with five factors: NPOA, NFQC, NMALSN, SRA, and CNPR. The results show that the scale presents acceptable fit quality indexes in the final factorial solution and adequate convergent validity. Conclusion: The PES-NWI in PHC has an adequate, robust, and reliable five-factor structure. The scale is valid and can be used in clinical practice, nursing management, and PHC research.
Original languageEnglish
Article number6422
Number of pages11
JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume18
Issue number12
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2 Jun 2021

Keywords

  • Community health nursing
  • Health facility environment
  • Nursing
  • Primary health care
  • Psychometric properties
  • Quality of care
  • Validation study
  • Work environment

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