Community Health Management Competency among Professional Nurses in Primary Care: A Study in Maha Sarakham Province
Keywords:
community health management, competency, primary care, professional nursesAbstract
Community health management competency among professional nurses working in primary care units is a critical factor for community health system quality, particularly amid growing challenges related to demographic transitions and the rising burden of non-communicable diseases. This analytical descriptive study aimed to assess community health management competency levels and analyze predictive factors among professional nurses working in primary health care units in Maha Sarakham Province. A total of 205 participants were selected through proportional stratified random sampling. Research instruments included a general information questionnaire (CVI =.90) and a community health management competency assessment tool (CVI =.90, Cronbach's alpha = .98). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and Hierarchical Multiple Regression Analysis. The results revealed that participants demonstrated a high level of overall competency (49.75%) and a moderate level (47.32%). In addition, it was found that age, male gender, the number of nurses per unit, organizational support, average daily workload, duration of service in the current unit, project leadership experience, and completion of specialized training programs collectively accounted for 43.5% of the variance in competency (R²=.435, p<.001). These findings suggest that relevant agencies should continuously promote specialized nursing training programs, provide opportunities for nurses to lead community health management projects, and strengthen organizational support to sustainably enhance community health management competency among primary health care nurses.
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