Healthcare Professionals' Electroencephalography Competency: A Disconnect Between Self-Assessment and Objective Testing.

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: The role of the healthcare professional (HCP) in performing high-quality electroencephalography (EEG) is critical to ensuring accurate results. This study analyzes HCPs' subjectively and objectively assessed EEG competence to provide information on their EEG competence and competence needs for the development of their education and training. METHODS: The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. The target group of the study was HCPs working in the clinical neurophysiology departments of university hospitals in Finland. The research data were collected using the EEG Competence instrument created for this research. The instrument consisted of a self-assessment section and a knowledge test component. RESULTS: The participants (N = 65; response rate, 81%) consisted of 34 registered nurses and 31 laboratory technologists. In the self-assessment section, the highest mean score was in patient observation (mean, 4.6) and the lowest was in EEG theoretical knowledge (mean, 3.9). In the test section, most of the respondents (73.8%) answered all questions correctly (maximum, 6 points). There was a positive correlation between age, work experience, own satisfaction with EEG competence, and subjective self-assessment. Those familiar with EEG guidelines and who participated in training days assessed their competence as significantly better (P < .05). Respondents who read EEG-related literature on their own identified artifacts better (P = .005). CONCLUSIONS: Laboratory technologists' and registered nurses' subjectively and objectively assessed EEG competence was high. In the future, the EEG competence instrument should be developed further, and more research is needed to assess its psychometric properties to provide more information on HCPs' competence in the diagnostic process.