Development of a nursing practice scale for rheumatoid arthritis treatment with biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs

Objective The objective of the study was to develop a nursing practice scale for rheumatoid arthritis treatment with biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs. Methods An anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey was administered to 1826 nurses, 960 of whom were Certified Nurses by Japan Rheumatism Foundation (CNJRFs) and 866 were registered nurses (RNs). Using exploratory factor analysis, criterion validity, and known-groups technique, we assessed the reliability and validity of the self-created 19-item nursing practice scale to evaluate the care provided to patients with rheumatoid arthritis receiving biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs based on the nurse's role as clarified from a literature review of relevant studies. Results A total of 698 (38.4%) responses were collected from 407 CNJRFs and 291 RNs. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted on 18 items to examine three factors: 'nursing to enhance patients' capacity for self-care', 'nursing in which patients participate in decision-making', and 'nursing in which team medical care is promoted'. Cronbach's & alpha; was .95. The Spearman's coefficient was & rho; = .738 for criterion validity. Using the known-groups technique, CNJRFs had higher total scale scores than RNs (P < .05). Conclusions The results confirmed the reliability, criterion validity, and construct validity of the scale.