The Preparation–Practice Gap: An Integrative Literature Review
Authors: Hickerson Kirsten A. , Taylor Laura A. , Terhaar Mary F. 
Published: January 2016

How to Obtain Contact Hours by Reading This Issue

Instructions: 1.2
contact hours will be awarded by Villanova University College of Nursing upon successful completion of this activity. A contact hour is a unit of measurement that denotes 60 minutes of an organized learning activity. This is a learner-based activity. Villanova University College of Nursing does not require submission of your answers to the quiz.

A contact hour certificate will be awarded after you register, pay the registration fee, and complete the evaluation form online at
http://goo.gl/gMfXaf
.

In order to obtain contact hours you must:

1.
Read the article, “The Preparation–Practice Gap: An Integrative Literature Review,” found on pages 17–23, carefully noting any tables and other illustrative materials that are included to enhance your knowledge and understanding of the content. Be sure to keep track of the amount of time (number of minutes) you spend reading the article and completing the quiz.

2.
Read and answer each question on the quiz. After completing all of the questions, compare your answers to those provided within this issue. If you have incorrect answers, return to the article for further study.

3.
Go to the Villanova website to register for contact hour credit. You will be asked to provide your name, contact information, and a VISA, MasterCard, or Discover card number for payment of the $20.00 fee. Once you complete the online evaluation, a certificate will be automatically generated.

This activity is valid for continuing education credit until
December 31, 2018
.

Contact Hours
This activity is co-provided by Villanova University College of Nursing and SLACK Incorporated.
Villanova University College of Nursing is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.

Objectives

List the causes for the preparation–practice gap.

State the strategies to decrease or mitigate the preparation–practice gap.

Disclosure Statement
Neither the planners nor the authors have any conflicts of interest to disclose.

Background:
The purpose of this integrative literature review was to evaluate and synthesize the evidence regarding the existence, extent, and significance of a preparation–practice gap—namely, the deficits in knowledge and skills that novice nurses may demonstrate on entry into the clinical setting and the identified best practices to narrow this gap.

Method:
An integrative literature review was performed.

Results:
A final set of 50 articles were included in the review. Three main themes permeate the evidence: a preparation–practice gap exists; this gap is costly; and closing the preparation–practice gap will likely rely on changes in undergraduate education and on-the-job remediation (i.e., nurse residency or preceptor programs).

Conclusions:
The preparation–practice gap is a challenge that has faced the nursing profession for years. Efforts to close this gap can be justified on the hopes of decreasing turnover (and its attendant costs), boosting morale of novice nurses and their preceptors, decreasing stress among the novice nurses, and improving patient safety.

J Contin Educ Nurs.
2016;47(1):17–23.