Faculty Collaboration Database

Characteristics of background check findings in nursing students. J Prof Nurs 2024;52:86-93

Date

05/23/2024

Pubmed ID

38777531

DOI

10.1016/j.profnurs.2024.04.002

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-85190089606 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   2 Citations

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Background checks are used in nursing education to assess public risk. To date, no study has described the most common and most serious findings in nursing students.

PURPOSE: Our study describes the most common and most serious characteristics of BGC findings in nursing students attending large universities.

METHOD: Our retrospective study describes characteristics of aggregated, de-identified background check data from a convenience sample of 16 US nursing programs set in large universities 2014-2019.

FINDINGS: Sampled programs collected 45,613 background checks, with 1548 findings (3.4 %). Severity of findings included criminal (62.5 %), non-criminal (4.6 %), felony (0.8 %), and other (11.6 %). Severity data were missing from 20.4 % of records. Finding types included substance use (23.7 %), disorderly conduct (8.7 %), property crimes (2.4 %) and crimes against persons (1 %). Type data was missing from 64.3 % of records.

DISCUSSION: Future research should examine whether background check type or severity indicates a nursing student poses a public risk.

Author List

Peters C, Doering J

Author

Jennifer Doering PhD Associate Professor in the Nursing department at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Crime
Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate
Female
Humans
Male
Retrospective Studies
Students, Nursing
United States
Universities