What is Competency?

I am flying to Silver Springs, Maryland the American Nurses Association Congress on Nursing Practice & Economics (CNPE) meeting on Friday and Saturday. There will be over 60 nurses who practice in variety of settings (hospital, nursing education, public health, home care, nursing management, etc.) across the U.S. at this meeting.

I was elected to the Congress at the ANA House of Delegates in 2006. I am part of a subcommittee working on a definition of Competency.

How do you define competency? Are you competent? How do you measure competency in your nursing practice?