The Cultural Competence of Graduating Nursing Students.

PURPOSE: Cultural competence is an essential component in nursing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of cultural competence of graduating nursing students, to identify associated background factors to cultural competence, and furthermore to establish whether teaching multicultural nursing was implemented in nursing education.

DESIGN: A structured Cultural Competence Assessment Tool was used in a correlational design with a sample of 295 nursing students in southern Finland.

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS: The level of cultural competence was moderate, and the majority of students had studied multicultural nursing. Minority background (p = .001), frequency of interacting with different cultures (p = .002), linguistic skills (p = .002), and exchange studies (p = .024) were positively associated to higher cultural competence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: To improve cultural competence in students, nursing education should provide continuous opportunities for students to interact with different cultures, develop linguistic skills, and provide possibilities for internationalization both at home and abroad.