DEFINITIONS FROM THE LITERATUREStob

DEFINITIONS FROM THE LITERATURE
Stobinski (2008) stated ‘‘that the single greatest problem in
competency assessment is the lack of a definition for the
term competency’’ (p. 421). Stobinski maintained that the
assessment of competencydepends on a definition of
the term, which drives the assessment process. If the capacity for learning were the basis for competency, then basic
knowledge testing would be a good measure; however,
if the ability to apply those skills is included in the definition
of competency, then there must be a means to test those
skills. For nursing, the definition of competency has proven
elusive and inconsistent (Stobinski, 2008). Lundgren and
Houseman (2002) aligned having a clear definition of competency with the concept of continuing competency and
found that continuing competence depends on a clear definition for nursing competency. ‘‘The issue of continuing