{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,7]],"date-time":"2026-03-07T02:12:45Z","timestamp":1772849565120,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,31]],"date-time":"2024-05-31T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1717113600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"CARE\u2014Research Center on Health and Social Sciences of the Portalegre Polytechnic University"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Geriatrics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: As the aging population grows, facing multifaceted health challenges and escalating care costs, equipping newly graduated nurses with the requisite skills for high-quality gerontogeriatric care becomes crucial. This study assesses the psychometric properties of a Gerontogeriatric Competency (GGC) scale to evaluate the competencies of newly graduated registered nurses (RNs). Methods: Using a convenience sampling approach, a nationwide, observational prospective cohort study was conducted among 272 newly graduated RNs. The evaluation framework included a sociodemographic questionnaire, three groups of questions targeting gerontogeriatric nursing education aspects, and the GGC scale, with 64 competencies. Construct validity (via confirmatory factor analysis), known-group validity and reliability (assessed by Cronbach\u2019s \u03b1) were examined. Results: The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) showed an adequate index fit: the ratio of chi-square to degrees of freedom (\u03c72\/df) = 2.785, the goodness-of-fit index (GFI) = 0.579, confirmatory fit index (CFI) = 0.864, the parsimony goodness-of-fit index (PGFI) = 0.526, the parsimony confirmatory-of-fit index (PCFI) = 0.809, the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.087, and the modified expected cross-validation index (MECVI) = 24.418. Differences were observed in gerontogeriatric competencies based on curriculum inclusion, self-confidence, knowledge in caring for older adults, and satisfaction with the nursing program content. The Cronbach\u2019s \u03b1 coefficient was 0.992 for the overall scale and ranged from 0.935 to 0.983 for the GGC dimensions. Conclusions: The GGC scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the gerontogeriatric competencies of new graduate RNs, highlighting its potential to enhance education, training, and, ultimately, the quality of care provided to the older population.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/geriatrics9030073","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,6,3]],"date-time":"2024-06-03T10:08:38Z","timestamp":1717409318000},"page":"73","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Core Competencies for Gerontogeriatric Nursing: A Validation Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"9","author":[{"given":"Maria Jos\u00e9","family":"Catal\u00e3o","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Sciences and Technologies, School of Health, Portalegre Polytechnic University, Campus Polit\u00e9cnico 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal"},{"name":"CARE\u2014Research Center on Health and Social Sciences, Portalegre Polytechnic University, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal"},{"name":"Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, 3810-198 Aveiro, Portugal"},{"name":"ICBAS, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7455-1081","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Helena","family":"Arco","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Sciences and Technologies, School of Health, Portalegre Polytechnic University, Campus Polit\u00e9cnico 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal"},{"name":"CARE\u2014Research Center on Health and Social Sciences, Portalegre Polytechnic University, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0053-5745","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nuno","family":"Carrajola","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Sciences and Technologies, School of Health, Portalegre Polytechnic University, Campus Polit\u00e9cnico 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal"},{"name":"Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, 3810-198 Aveiro, Portugal"},{"name":"ICBAS, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Maria de Lurdes","family":"Almeida","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Health Sciences Research Unit: Nursing\u2014UICISA, Nursing School of Coimbra, 3046-851 Coimbra, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6843-6228","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hugo","family":"Neves","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Health Sciences Research Unit: Nursing\u2014UICISA, Nursing School of Coimbra, 3046-851 Coimbra, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3027-7978","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jo\u00e3o","family":"Tavares","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CINTESIS@RISE, Health Sciences Research Unit: School of Health, School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-198 Aveiro, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,31]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"EUROSTAT (2023, April 03). 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