Foreign-Educated Nurses: Effects on Nurse, Quality of Care, and Patient-Safety-Indicator Outcomes

Approximately 8% of nurses in the United States were educated abroad, and in Florida and California, foreign-educated nurses (FENs) represent large percentages of the nurse labor force. It is important to know whether these nurses are prepared to care for patients who have complex needs; communicate successfully with other nurses, physicians, patients, and families; adapt to high technology in today's acute-care settings; and successfully transition to practice in the United States. It has been noted there is no comparative outcomes research on FENs and U.S.-educated nurses. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of hospitals' proportions of FENs on nurse outcomes, hospital quality of care, perceptions of work environment, and patient-safety incidences.