Faculty Perceptions of the Improvement and Effort for the Achievement of Quality in Nursing Education through Accreditation in Baccalaureate Nursing Programs

Abstract

T his study investigated faculty perceptions of the improvement and effort for achievement of the quality of nursing educa- tion through accreditation in baccalaureate nursing programs in 2006. Survey data from 190 professors of 33 accredited nursing schools were statistically analyzed using SPSS ver. 19.0 software with descriptive statistics, t-tests, and ANOVA. Through accreditation, about two-thirds of subjects perceived that the quality of education had ‘improved’ and the purposes of the accreditation were moderately successfully achieved (score 3.50). They also perceived their schools made a strong attempt (score 4.24) to assure quality. The perception scores of efforts to assure the quality of education varied significantly according to the characteristics of the subjects, the existence of a university hospital, the type of college, and the year of school founding. There were significant differences between the level of improvement in education and the extent of effort to assure the quality of education. Accreditation contributed to improved quality of nursing education except for some issues which need more consideration. To maintain high quality, the accreditation of baccalaureate nursing programs should be performed with continuity and on a regular basis.