Clinical Nurses' Patient Safety Competencies and Patient Safety Education Needs

Purpose: This study aimed to identify patient safety competency levels and educational needs among clinical nurses in general and tertiary hospitals, and to analyze the factors influencing their perceptions.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from March 3 to April 17, 2020, among nurses working at a general and a tertiary hospital in South Korea. Questionnaires were distributed to 480 nurses who provided direct patient care in general and specialized units. Patient safety competency was measured using validated instruments, while educational needs were evaluated according to the World Health Organization’s patient safety curriculum topics. A total of 426 questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis.Results: The mean patient safety competency scores were 3.90 (SD = 0.40) for attitudes, 3.80 (SD = 0.50) for skills, and 3.40 (SD = 0.70) for knowledge. Educational needs were generally high (M = 4.50, SD = 0.50), particularly for medication administration (M = 4.80, SD = 0.40). Multiple regression analysis indicated that educational needs increased with higher competency in attitudes (β = 0.43, <i>p</i> < .001) and knowledge (β = 0.10, <i>p</i> < .01). Nurses with high patient safety competency and those who preferred receiving safety education before entering the nursing profession reported relatively higher educational needs.Conclusion: Greater patient safety competency and a preference for receiving safety education at the undergraduate level were associated with increased recognition of educational needs, suggesting that higher competency heightens awareness of knowledge gaps. These findings underscore the importance of developing differentiated educational strategies tailored to competency levels and supported by objective assessments.