The Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence and Disaster Nursing Competence in Nurses Working in Shahrekord

Background and Aims Nurses are the first of rescuers who are present after the incidence of disasters. Thus, they should be able to provide required cares for injured people using their competencies. Assessing disaster nursing competence and its effective factors are essential for enhancing the quality of nursing care. The present study was conducted to determine the relationship between emotional intelligence and disaster nursing competence. Methods This correlational cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 nurses working in an educational hospital in Shahrekord City, Iran. Sampling was performed by a multi-stage method. Data were collected using the Disaster Nursing Competence Scale as well as Emotional Intelligence questionnaire and analyzed by Independent Samples t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and Pearson’s correlation coefficient in SPSS. Results The majority of nurses (53.3%) had average emotional intelligence, and the mean±SD score of the total disaster nursing competence was 162.58±2.70. Pearson’s correlation coefficient suggested a significant positive correlation between emotional intelligence and disaster nursing competence. Conclusion There was a significant relationship between emotional intelligence and disaster nursing competence. Therefore, appropriate educational programs should be designed to promote the level of emotional intelligence of nurses to increase their competence in disaster response.