Evidence mapPaperPMID 42375900Full record

ArticleCureus2026

Stroke Care Core Competencies Among Nurses at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Southwestern Uganda.

Josephine N Najjuma, Scovia Nalugo Mbalinda, Frank Ssedyabane, Mark Kaddumukasa, Shifra Nankunda, Esther C Atukunda

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Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Josephine N NajjumaNursing, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, UGA.
Scovia Nalugo MbalindaDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, UGA.
Frank SsedyabaneMedical Laboratory Science, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, UGA.
Mark KaddumukasaDepartment of Internal Medicine, Makerere University, Kampala, UGA.
Shifra NankundaNursing, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, UGA.
Esther C AtukundaPharmacy, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, UGA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundNurses play a key role in stroke patient care in hospitals, yet little is known about their stroke-specific competencies in low-resource settings like Uganda. Assessment of stroke care competency among new and experienced nurses is important for identifying areas of improvement and development of professional programs to enhance the quality of care for patients. This study assessed self-reported stroke care competencies among nurses at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) to identify priority training needs.

methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study at MRRH, from September to November 2025, using the Stroke Core Competency Framework (SCCF), a self-assessment tool with 24 competencies based on Benner's Novice-to-Expert scale. All nurses caring for stroke patients (N=25) completed a paper-based questionnaire. Data was analyzed in Stata, release 17 (StataCorp LLC, College Station, USA).

resultsA total of 25 nurses, with a mean age of 31.8 (SD ±7.2) years, were enrolled; 52% (13/25) were female participants. The majority of the participants had attained diploma training (12/25, 48%), and only 8% (2/25) had more than 15 years of experience in nursing care. For most of the competencies and the corresponding items, most rated themselves as novice or advanced beginners across domains (e.g., 16/25 (64%) in activity/mobilization; 16/25 (64%) in dysphagia assessment), with higher competence in basic anatomy/physiology.

conclusionThe majority of nurses are either novice or advanced beginners when it comes to competence levels for stroke care. Context-specific and competency-based continuing education is needed in implementing stroke evidence-based practices and designing stroke-based training for nurses to achieve optimal competency.

Indexed as

competency-based educationneeds assessmentnursing competenciesstrokeuganda

Identifiers

PMID42375900
PMCPMC13311126

What Socratic holds

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.