Developing nursing competencies to support healthy aging in the era of super-aged society: A Delphi approach

Purpose In this study, we aimed to define the specific competencies required for nurses to effectively support healthy aging, thereby enhancing the professionalism of nurses, improving the quality of nursing services related to healthy aging, and ultimately contributing to the quality of life for older adults. Methods Through a literature review, we derived nursing competencies for healthy aging; based on the review, we verified content validity through a Delphi survey with 10 related experts. Expert Delphi survey participants judged that expert opinions were not in agreement when the content validity ratio was less than 0.62, the consensus was less than 0.75, and the convergence was in the range of 0 to 0.5. Results Nursing competency for healthy aging consists of 9 domains, 26 key competencies, and 132 enabling competencies. Areas include “Assessment of healthy aging,” “Service coordination,” “Prevention and management of intrinsic capacity decline,” “Support for caregivers and care staff,” “Collaboration,” “Communication,” “Leadership,” “Professional ethics,” and “Education and Research.” Conclusion This study provides foundational data, enhancing the professionalism and expanding the roles of nurses by specifically presenting competencies required to support healthy aging in older adults. These competencies can serve as practical and systematic guidelines to advance nursing education and competency development, enabling nurses to effectively support healthy aging in older adults.