National Survey on Essential Communication Skills to Address Language Demands in Canadian Nursing Practice.
Eunice Eunhee Jang, Maryam Wagner, Jeanne Sinclair
PMID 40035227WHAT IT FOUND
Nurses rated advanced interprofessional and advocacy communication skills as more important if they were educators or non-native English speakers.
Routine patient care skills were rated consistently important across all groups, suggesting these are universal baseline requirements.
Key findings
01Educators rated advanced writing and critical listening skills as significantly more important than practitioners did, while regulators rated most language demands as less important.
02Respondents whose first language was not English rated advanced interprofessional and advocacy skills as more important than native English speakers did.
03Perceived importance of routine patient interaction skills (such as clinical assessment and documentation) did not vary significantly by professional designation, role, or setting.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Nearly half of the initial respondents (2529 of 5164) were excluded because they abandoned the survey after completing only some sections, potentially introducing bias. The study focused exclusively on English-language results, excluding French-speaking nurses and potentially missing cultural or linguistic nuances in Francophone settings. Participants self-reported their perceptions of importance; the study did not measure actual communication performance or patient outcomes. The demographic profile was heavily skewed towards female and White respondents, limiting generalisability to more diverse nursing populations.
Declared interests
The study was funded by the Canadian Council of Registered Nurse Regulators (CCPNR). The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the higher importance ratings given by educators and non-native speakers as evidence that these groups are better communicators. The survey measured perceived importance of skills, not actual proficiency or clinical effectiveness.