Capturing interprofessional collaboration between physicians and nurses in an acute care setting. A validation study of the revised German version of the Collaborative Practice Scales

ABSTRACT

The relevance of interprofessional collaboration (IPC) is widely acknowledged. Given the lack of a fully validated instrument in the German language for measuring the level of IPC, we built upon the current, albeit psychometrically weak, German-language version of the instrument to devise a new version with improved wording and for subsequent psychometric testing. In a tertiary hospital in German-speaking Switzerland, 160 physicians and 374 nurses completed the revised Collaborative Practice Scales in German (CPS-G) and additional scales regarding positive and negative activation at work and regarding job demands and job resources. A confirmatory factor analysis of the CPS-G was performed, and internal consistency estimates were computed. Partial correlations between the CPS-G and the additional scales were examined for criterion validity. The model fit of the CPS-G was good for physicians (χ²/df = 2.38, p < .001; CFI = .923; RMSEA = .051, 90%-CI (0.037–0.065)) and moderate for nurses (χ²/df = 5, p < .001; CFI = .919; RMSEA = .087, 90%-CI (0.072–0.102)) supporting the two-factor structure of the original English version. Reliability was acceptable in all sub-scales for physicians (inclusion, α = 0.79; consensus, α = 0.80) and nurses (assertiveness, α = 0.77; understanding α = 0.82). As expected, the CPS-G physicians’ subscales correlated positively with positive activation and job resources and negatively with negative activation and job demands, albeit not always statistically significantly. Similar correlations were found with the CPS-G nurses’ subscales other than in one instance. The CPS-G showed good construct and criterion validity and acceptable internal consistency. It consequently represents a valid instrument ready for application to measure the level of interprofessional collaboration between nurses and physicians in acute care settings.

KEYWORDS:

• Quantitave method
• survey
• Interprofessional collaboration
• Collaborative competence
• professional relations

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Jane White for having edited the manuscript.

Declaration of interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Statement of funding resources

This study was conducted without external funding.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Horst Rettke

Horst Rettke PhD, RN, has been working as registered nurse in various clinical fields. He achieved his PhD in Nursing Science in 2013. He works as C His scientific expertise includes quantitative and qualitative methods with emphasis on focus group research. Research topics center on chronic illness, spiritual needs, and nursing service context factors. He works as Clinical Nurse Scientist at the University Hospital Zurich.

Anja I. Lehmann

Anja I. Lehmann is a PhD-Candidate at department of Public and Organizational Health and at the Center of Salutogenesis at the Institute of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention of the University of Zurich. She holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration and a bachelor's and master's degree in Psychology with the emphasis on Work, Health and Clinical Psychology. Throughout her education she has gained work experiences in other research institutions as well as in therapeutic and consulting contexts.

Rebecca Brauchli

Rebecca Brauchli PhD, has been working as a researcher and project leader since 2011 at the Department of Public and Organizational Health. Her main research goal is the theoretical and practical exploration of the positive and negative impact of working conditions on health and wellbeing as well as on personal life. She studied psychology at the University of Zurich and did her PhD at the ETH Zurich.

Georg F. Bauer

Georg F. Bauer MD DrPH, is Professor and head of the Division Public and Organizational Health and of the Center of Salutogenesis, University of Zurich, Switzerland. As a MD, he received a Doctor of Public Health at the School of Public Health, Berkeley and an advanced doctorate at the chair of work and organizational psychology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. His research focuses on the concept of Salutogenesis and on positive, salutogenic health development at work and in organizations.

Heidi Petry

Heidi Petry PhD, RN has achieved her PhD in Nursing Science in 2000, at the University of WA, Seattle, USA. She has many years of national and international experience in clinical practice, education and research. Her expertise centers on qualitative and mixed method research methodologies, gerontological and patient-centered care. She currently is the head of the Center for Clinical Nursing Science at the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland.

Rebecca Spirig

Rebecca Spirig PHD, RN has been working as clinical nurse specialist, nurse leader and nurse scientist in diverse clinical and academic settings. Until the end of 2018, she was the director of nursing and allied health care professions at the University Hospital Zurich. Currently, she works at the Institute of Nursing Science at the University of Basel. Her research focuses on nurse work environment, leadership and nursing processes utilizing mixed methods research.