Background: There are huge demands for aged-care workers, and undergraduate gerontological nursing education plays a critical role in providing academic and professional training.
Purpose: To examine relationships of characteristics, aged-care education, and gerontological nursing competencies with the intention to work in aged care.
Methods: An online survey was distributed to undergraduate nursing students between April and June 2022 to gather characteristics, relevant aged-care education, gerontological nursing competencies, and intentions to work in aged care data. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted to identify determinants of the intention to work in aged care.
Results: Students (n = 358) who were older (p < 0.001) and who were married (p < 0.001) had higher intentions to work in aged care. "Promoting mental health and psychological well-being", "Providing evidence-based dementia care", and "Enabling access to technology", were also associated with positive intentions.
Conclusions: This study provides evidence on determinants of the intention to work in aged care, particularly gerontological nursing competencies.
Keywords: Aged; Competency-based education; Intention; Long-term care; Nursing.
© 2023. The Author(s).