Mathematical calculation skills required for drug administration in undergraduate nursing students to ensure patient safety: A descriptive study

The mediating role of pediatric nursing competence in the relationship between pediatric drug administration self-efficacy and medical error tendency in nursing students

AIM

This study was conducted to determine the mediating role of pediatric nursing competence in the relationship between self-efficacy in pediatric drug administration and medical error tendency in nursing students.

BACKGROUND

The self-efficacy of nursing students towards drug administration knowledge and practices is one of the determinants of achieving the goals of nursing education programs related to drug administration.

DESIGN

The sample of the descriptive and correlational study consisted of a total of 303 3rd and 4th-year students taking the Pediatric Health and Diseases Nursing course at the Department of Nursing. Data were collected using the Pediatric Nursing Competency Scale (PNCS), the Medication Administration Self-Efficacy Scale in Children for Nursing Students (MASSC) and the Medical Errors Tendency Scale (METS). Pearson correlation analysis, linear regression analysis, independent groups t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post hoc (Tukey, LSD) test were used to analyze the data. In addition, hierarchical regression analyses regarding the mediation effect were performed using PROCESS Model 4 developed by Hayes (2013) for SPSS.

RESULTS

When the correlation levels between the total scores of MASSC, PNSC and METS were analyzed, a positive moderate correlation was found between PNSC and MASSC total scores, a positive weak correlation was found between METS and MASSC total scores and a positive weak correlation was found between METS and PNSC total scores (p<0.05). As a result of the analysis, the model was found to be significant and the total change in METS was explained by 17.3 % of the total change in METS (F=63.289;p=0.000). It was found that PNSC was a partial mediator variable between MASSC and METS.

CONCLUSION

As a result of the study, it was determined that pediatric nursing competence had a partial mediating role in the relationship between pediatric drug administration self-efficacy and medical error tendency in nursing students.

Knowledge and Perception of Paediatric Drug Dosing: Impact of Paediatric Drug Dosing Workshop

BACKGROUND

Paediatric patients frequently encounter medication errors caused by the requirement for individualised drug dose estimates based on weight, age variance, and drug pharmacokinetics. One thing contributing to drug dosing errors is the lack of healthcare personnel's knowledge of paediatric drug dosing. The present study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and perception regarding the workshop on paediatric drug dosing among undergraduate pharmacy students.

METHOD

A prospective pre-post study was conducted. A virtual workshop on paediatric drug dosing was designed and developed by the clinical pharmacy lecturer from Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) for pharmacy students. An online questionnaire with 15 questions regarding knowledge of paediatric drug dosing and perception of the virtual workshop on paediatric drug dosing was used to evaluate pharmacy students' knowledge pre- and post-workshop.

RESULT

Twenty-six students took part in the study (100%). In the pre-workshop on paediatric drug dosing calculation, most students had poor knowledge of the paediatric drug dosing calculation, scored 8 out of 15, 26.92% between 9 to 11 and only 11.54% scored ≥ 12. There was a statistically significant difference in median knowledge score between pre- and post-workshop (p< 0.05). Among the students, 73.08% stated that they strongly agreed that the online workshop attracted their attention and 76.92% of students strongly agreed that they were able to calculate paediatric drug dosing after joining the online workshop.

CONCLUSION

Results demonstrate that pharmacy students have insufficient knowledge of paediatric drug dosing calculations. Virtual workshop is one strategy that could improve the pharmacy students' knowledge.

Pediatric nursing students' self-efficacy regarding medication administration and clinical comfort and worry: A pre-posttest comparative study of nurse mentoring versus peer mentoring

AIM

This study aimed to examine the effect of mentoring practice by graduate nursing students and clinical nurses on students' self-efficacy in pediatric medication administration, clinical comfort and worry levels of students taking pediatric nursing courses.

BACKGROUND

Children are a highly sensitive group against medication administration errors. Improving the self-efficacy of student nurses who will work with this group toward medication administration is essential. Mentoring programs can increase students' skills and self-efficacy by reducing their stress levels during clinical practice.

DESIGN

The research is a two-group pretest-posttest randomized controlled experimental research design.

SETTINGS

The study was conducted in the pediatric units of a training and research hospital located in the Western Black Sea region of Turkey between October 1, 2022 and December 30, 2022, as part of the clinical practice of the Pediatric Nursing course in the fall semester of 2022-2023.

PARTICIPANTS

The study sample consisted of 143 students (peer mentoring group=73, nurse mentoring group=70) who were 3rd-year students taking the pediatric nursing course.

METHODS

Participant information form, Medication Administration Self-Efficacy Scale in Children for Nursing Students (MASSCNS) and Pediatric Nursing Students Clinical Comfort and Worry Tool (PNSCCWT) were administered to the students before the clinical practice. Then, the groups received mentoring practice in the clinical practice area for 14 weeks. At the end of the practice, MASSCNS and PNSCCWT were administered to the students again.

RESULTS

The groups were homogeneously distributed when compared according to descriptive characteristics (p > 0.05). The self-efficacy scores of the students in both groups after clinical practice were significantly different from those before clinical practice (tnurse=-4.724, pnurse=0.000 <0.05; tpeer=-3.742, ppeer=0.001 <0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

This study's results indicate that nurse mentoring and peer mentoring effectively increase nursing students' self-efficacy during pediatric clinical practice. While nurse mentors decreased students' worry, peer mentors increased students' clinical comfort levels.

A multisite transition to nursing program: an innovative approach to facilitate incoming nursing students' academic success

OBJECTIVES

Evaluate effectiveness of a multisite program promoting the successful transition of baccalaureate and graduate entry (with a prior degree) students into pre-licensure curricula. Faculty concern around nursing students' successful completion of nursing programs and passage of the nursing licensure exam stems from challenges students encounter in core courses, study habits, and civility.

METHODS

One hundred eighty-five students participated in a quasi-experimental pre-post-test mixed-methods study. Students completed content modules and open-ended surveys.

RESULTS

Most students found the program helpful. Statistically significant improvements were shown in medication calculation, reading comprehension, and medical terminology. No statistically significant improvement was shown in anatomy and physiology.

CONCLUSIONS

Our Transition to Nursing program shows promise and adds to proactive strategies in preparing students for a successful transition into nursing programs. Our innovative approach may serve as a model to nursing schools and colleges around the world to promote student success.

A National Survey of Medication Dosage Calculation Teaching Methods and Competency Criteria on Nursing Student Success: Recommendations for Nurse Educators

AIM

The purpose of this study was to synthesize the current landscape of medication dosage calculation (MDC) education for prelicensure nursing students in the United States.

BACKGROUND

There is little consistency in the format of MDC education and evaluation in prelicensure nursing education, yet consequences of not passing MDC exams can affect the number of graduating nurses. Consequences can include withdrawal from the course, delayed progression of a semester or more, or dismissal from the nursing program.

METHOD

An electronic survey was emailed to prelicensure administrators of 1,620 associate, bachelor's, and master's entry programs in the United States.

RESULTS

Surveys were received from 210 programs. Results confirmed inconsistent methods used to teach and evaluate MDC competency.

CONCLUSION

Inconsistent teaching methods and competency criteria can affect retention and subsequent growth of the nursing workforce. Based on the characteristics associated with MDC success, recommendations are made for nurse educators.

Where do nursing students make mistakes when calculating drug doses? A retrospective study

Background

Research internationally shows that nursing students find dosage calculation difficult. Identifying the specific aspects of dose calculation procedures that are most commonly associated with errors would enable teaching to be targeted where it is most needed, thus improving students’ calculation skills. The aim of this study was to analyze where specifically nursing students make mistakes when calculating drug doses.

Method

Retrospective analysis of written examination papers including dosage calculation exercises from years 1, 2, and 3 of a nursing degree program. Exercises were analyzed for errors in relation to 23 agreed categories reflecting different kinds of calculation or steps in the calculation process. We conducted a descriptive and bivariate analysis of results, examining the relationship between the presence of errors and the proportion of correct and incorrect final answers.

Results

A total of 285 exam papers including 1034 calculation exercises were reviewed. After excluding those that had been left blank, a total of 863 exercises were analyzed in detail. A correct answer was given in 455 exercises (52.7%), although this varied enormously depending on the type of exercise: 89.2% of basic dose calculations were correct, compared with just 2.9% of those involving consideration of maximum concentration. The most common errors were related to unit conversion, more complex concepts such as maximum concentration and minimum dilution, or failure to contextualize the answer to the clinical case. Other frequent errors involved not extracting the key information from the question, not including the units when giving their answer, and not understanding the question. In general, fewer errors in basic dose calculations were made by students at later stages of the degree program.

Conclusions

Students struggle with more complex dose calculations. The main errors detected were related to understanding the task and the key concepts involved, as well as not following the correct steps when solving the problem.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12912-022-01085-9.

Mathematics anxiety and associated interventions in nursing: A scoping review

BACKGROUND

Mathematics proficiency is a key element in accurate medication calculation and patient safety. Education providers play an important role in preparing students for safe medication administration. However, the presence of mathematics anxiety in students may impact on relevant mathematics mastery.

OBJECTIVES

To explore what is known and reported about mathematics anxiety in nursing and the nature of interventions developed.

DESIGN

A scoping review guided by the work of Arksey and O'Malley and Joanna Briggs Institute methodology.

DATA SOURCES

CINAHL, Medline, ERIC and Proquest Nursing and Allied Health.

REVIEW METHODS

Search included primary research published between 2000 and 2021 and in English language.

RESULTS

Ten studies were included in the final review, and numerous different tools used to measure mathematics anxiety. A number of factors were found to influence mathematics anxiety and various local interventions are reported. There is a lack of consistency in research reporting on mathematics anxiety, with most being single-site studies and small in scale.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, despite its importance, there is scant research into mathematics anxiety in nursing. There is a need for a consistent, valid and reliable tool for its measurement, as well as validated interventions to address it. Furthermore, there is a deficit in research evaluating mathematics anxiety longitudinally across the duration of an education program. There is a need for nurse education providers to work to address these important gaps and establish entry-level benchmark requirements.

Medication competence: a concept analysis

OBJECTIVE

This paper aims to provide a thorough concept analysis of medication competence, within the context of nursing education. Also, to establish a clear definition of the concept for research purposes, and to improve the communication and use of the concept in healthcare practice.

DESIGN & METHODS

The Walker and Avant concept analysis was utilized as a framework to develop a comprehensive understanding of the phenomena of medication competence in nursing education.

DATA SOURCES

A review of literature on medication competence was conducted using the electronic databases of EBSCOhost, CINAHL Complete, Web of Science, Ovid full text, ERIC, ScienceDirect, International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INASCL), PubMed, Google Scholar, and PsychLit. Search terms included medication competence, medication safety, medication management, medication skills, healthcare, nursing, and nursing students.

RESULTS

The literature search resulted in 39 articles that met the inclusion criteria. Three defining attributes were identified: pharmacovigilant, effective skills competence, and interprofessionality. Antecedents, consequences, and empirical referents of the concept medication competence were also highlighted.

CONCLUSIONS

Insight gleaned from this concept analysis will enhance the ability of nurse educators to effectively educate and assess medication competence among nursing students. By defining medication competence it validates the importance of further quantitative and qualitative research exploration of medication competence among nursing students and other healthcare specialties. Thus, this concept analysis establishes the springboard for innovative educational interventions, as well as future research in nursing education.

Instruction strategies for drug calculation skills: A systematic review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Medication errors and unsafe medication practices are a leading cause of injury and avoidable harm worldwide.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this review was to (i) explore and identify evidence-based strategies to teach medication calculation skills by determining the most common errors and assess the quality, level, and role of the evidence, and (ii) describe instruction strategies for drug calculation skills development or improvement based on seven research-based principles for smart teaching.

DESIGN

Systematic review.

DATA SOURCES

CINAHL, PubMed, and PsycINFO.

REVIEW METHODS

The review followed Whittemore and Knafl's framework steps with an assessment of the studies reporting using PRISMA, STROBE, COREQ and categorizing their methods by evidence hierarchy and roles. Two authors independently assessed eligibility and extracted data.

RESULTS

From the total 1793 articles, 51 studies met the eligibility criteria. The studies included 9210 nursing students/nurses and mainly used a quantitative approach (67.5%), followed by qualitative (22.5%) and mixed methods (10.0%), with the students/nurses doing arithmetic and conceptual mistakes. The findings presented were low levels of evidence III (23.5%) and V (41.2%), quality Level B (82.4%), and 47.1% focused on choosing the appropriate teaching and intervention approaches (role of the evidence). The teaching strategies addressed multiple smart teaching principles, but mainly prior knowledge (principle 1, 39.2%). The least used strategies were those addressing the levers that influence motivation and behaviors such as value, expectations, and environment climate (principle 3, 13.7%). Two studies addressed five principles simultaneously.

CONCLUSIONS

Regarding teaching strategies, the most recurring strategies were early diagnostic assessments on knowledge, anxiety and/or self-confidence, considering knowledge organization with scaffolding complex tasks, being explicit about objectives and expectations, and usage of e-learning. However, e-learning was mainly used after 2018. Considering the low levels and quality of evidence, we recommend higher levels of research design for future research. Randomized Controlled Trials could be conducted when randomizing teaching methods per semester or questions embedded in software. Web-base software could be used to support teaching and research approaches.

Nurse Education and Mathematical Competency: Implementation of an Online, Self-Directed, Prerequisite Model

Mathematical competency in the profession of nursing has increasingly become a central focus as more nursing students appear to struggle with basic concepts of arithmetic, mental estimation, and critical reasoning. This paper highlights how one School of Nursing in Ontario, Canada implemented a Dosage Calculation Competency Test model which involved an online, self-directed, prerequisite approach to improve student mathematical competency and confidence. The purpose of this research case study was to document, through shared participant perceptions, the creation, implementation, and subsequent modifications to a Dosage Calculation Competency Test model in light of student needs and advances in online learning and assessment. The research design combined a quantitative survey of Year 1-4 nursing students, followed by a series of qualitative, semi-structured interviews with nursing students and program instructors. The study took place within a School of Nursing undergraduate program in Ontario, Canada. Forty-four participants, including students from all four years of the nursing program, completed the survey, followed by individual interviews with nine students and six faculty instructors. Survey (the open-response items) and interview data were analyzed thematically using ATLAS.ti (ATLAS.ti, Berlin, Germany). The authors recount the new DCCT model's development, implementation, and subsequent modifications and further discuss student/instructor perceptions of learning types, math confidence, and competency. The paper concludes with a series of seven key recommendations for nursing programs.

Medication calculation skills of graduating nursing students within European context

AIM

The aim of this study is to evaluate the medication calculation skills of graduating nursing students in six European countries and analyse the associated factors.

BACKGROUND

Medication calculation skills are fundamental to medication safety, which is a substantial part of patient safety. Previous studies have raised concerns about the medication calculation skills of nurses and nursing students.

DESIGN

As part of a broader research project, this study applies a multinational cross-sectional survey design with three populations: graduating nursing students, nurse managers and patients.

METHODS

The students performed two calculations (tablet and fluid) testing medication calculation skills requiring different levels of conceptual understanding and arithmetic. The managers and patients answered one question about the students' medication kills. In total, 1,796 students, 538 managers and 1,327 patients participated the study. The data were analysed statistically. The STROBE guideline for cross-sectional studies was applied.

RESULTS

Almost all (99%) of the students performed the tablet calculation correctly, and the majority (71%) answered the fluid calculation correctly. Older age, a previous degree in health care and satisfaction with their current degree programme was positively associated with correct fluid calculations. The patients evaluated the students' medication skills higher than the nurse managers did and the evaluations were not systematically aligned with the calculation skills tested.

CONCLUSIONS

Nursing students have the skills to perform simple medication calculations, but a significant number of students have difficulties with calculations involving multiple operations and a higher level of conceptual understanding. Due to the variation in students' medication calculation skills and the unalignment between the managers' and patients' evaluations and the calculation tests, further research is needed.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Graduating nursing students enter clinical field as qualified professionals, but there is still room for improvement in their medication calculation skills. This calls for attention in the fields of clinical nursing, education and research.

The effect of animal-assisted therapy on nursing student anxiety: A randomized control study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Nursing student stress has a major impact on academic performance and testing anxiety is one prominent source. This study evaluated the influence of dogs in decreasing student anxiety at a nursing program prior to a medication dosage calculation exam.

METHOD

This study uses a convenience sample randomly assigned to a control and intervention group with a pre-pre, pre, post and post-post-test using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The intervention group experienced a therapy dog intervention prior to the medication dosage calculation exam.

RESULTS

Using a repeated measures one-way MANOVA, there was a statistically significance difference between intervention and control groups Wilk's ∧ = 0.761, F(8, 79) = 3.103, p < 0.01.

CONCLUSION

A brief interaction with therapy dogs prior to a medication calculation exam decreased anxiety in a convenience sample of nursing students. This study adds empirical knowledge to the field of animal-assisted therapy and nursing student anxiety-coping methods.

Efectividad de una Estrategia de enseñanza en Administración de Medicamentos en Pediatría

Introducción: La pandemia originada por el nuevo coronavirus, hizo que los docentes universitarios enfrentaran el desafío de adoptar nuevas estrategias didácticas de tipo virtual para dar continuidad al proceso enseñanza-aprendizaje. El objetivo del estudio fue determinar la efectividad del uso de un objeto virtual de aprendizaje en la formación de profesionales de Enfermería. Materiales y Método: Se trata de un estudio de tipo cuantitativo cuasi experimental pre-post con grupo control sin aleatorización. Las mediciones estuvieron orientadas a determinar el efecto de la aplicación del objeto virtual de aprendizaje. Resultados: La población estuvo constituida por la totalidad de estudiantes de quinto semestre de Enfermería de la Universidad de los Llanos, durante el primer y segundo semestre de 2018. Se garantizó una muestra de 81 sujetos (40 del grupo control y 41 del experimental). Se utilizó prueba de McNemar para determinar diferencias entre grupos pareados y la U de Mann Whitney para comparar los puntajes y la diferencia. Se evidenció el desarrollo de competencias en los dos grupos, pero con mayor nivel en el grupo intervenido con el objeto virtual, lo cual indica que la estrategia mejoró significativamente el desarrollo de competencias en comparación con la enseñanza tradicional y fue de bastante utilidad en época de pandemia. Conclusiones: La aplicación del objeto virtual de aprendizaje favoreció el proceso enseñanza aprendizaje, permitió desarrollar la competencia de administrar medicamentos en pediatría, de forma crítica y reflexiva.

Undergraduate nursing students' pharmacology knowledge and risk of error estimate

BACKGROUND

In the United States alone, medication error causes injury to approximately 1.3 million people every year. Frequently, nurses have been blamed for the high rates of medication administration errors. Factors associated with medication error by nurses are categorized as personal, contextual and knowledge-based. There is evidence in the literature that showed nurses have insufficient knowledge in pharmacology.

PURPOSE

The overall purpose of this study was to estimate the risk of error based on the combined scores on pharmacology knowledge and self-rated certainty scores of undergraduate nursing students.

METHOD

A cross-sectional and correlational study was conducted. Students enrolled in an undergraduate nursing program who completed or were currently taking the pharmacology course were eligible for the study. Based on power analysis, a sample of 156 students was needed to reach 80% power with a level of significance of 0.05. A 42-item Pharmacology Knowledge Questionnaire (PKQ) test was administered, and students were asked to provide their level of certainty for each of their answers. Risk of error was calculated based on the combined scores in PKQ and self-rated certainty scores.

RESULTS

147 nursing students, 83% females with a mean age of 24 (SD = 5) years, participated in the study. Mean score in the PKQ was 25 (SD = 3.51) out of 42 items, which is equivalent to a grade of 60% (with a calculated weighted mean grade of 56%). Drug calculation was the subject area where students had the lowest mean score. Mean overall risk of error for all 42 items in the PKQ was 1.7 (SD = 0.14), on a scale of 0-3. This means that, on average, high risk of error was noted in 14% of the students who rated incorrect answers with high certainty. Positive correlations were noted between age and pharmacology score, and between when pharmacology course was last taken and risk of error. A negative correlation was noted between when pharmacology course was last taken and pharmacology score.

Contextualising numeracy skill development and assessment in a first year undergraduate nursing subject: A mixed methods research study

BACKGROUND

Undergraduate nursing students continue to perform poorly on clinically-related numeracy tasks, making errors that betray fundamental misconceptions about the underlying mathematics. Graduate nurses are also prone to error in this area but they have the benefit of performing their calculations in a real-world setting with the assistance of colleague nurses if required. These conditions are difficult to simulate in a classroom environment, but when effort is made in this direction the effects can be rewarding for students and educators.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the effect on undergraduate nursing students' learning experience and test performance of a practical, clinically contextualised numeracy workshop featuring individual and collaborative modes of assessment.

DESIGN

A mixed methods study using pre and post tests and a survey.

SETTINGS

Clinical practice classrooms at an Australian university.

PARTICIPANTS

First year undergraduate nursing students undertaking a subject whose curriculum features medication safety and clinically-related numeracy.

METHODS

Administration of individual and collaborative short-answer pre and post tests, a survey, and facilitation of team-based, clinically-related numeracy activities over a 1.5 h workshop. All test marking, data collection and analysis were performed by the authors.

RESULTS

Positive responses to survey questions probing students' judgement of the effect of contextualised learning on their confidence, engagement and proficiency in nursing numeracy, as well as the value of working in a clinical setting. Significant improvement in students' performance in pre/post tests.

CONCLUSIONS

Contextualised, practical and collaborative learning and assessment of nursing numeracy is valued by students and has a positive effect on their experience and performance in the content area.

Adverse events encountered during clinical placements by undergraduate nursing students in Spain

BACKGROUND

During clinical placements, nursing students are exposed to adverse events generated by the clinical tasks they must perform.

OBJECTIVES

To describe the profile of adverse events encountered and the risks facing nursing students in clinical practice, as well as the severity and incidence of these events.

DESIGN

Observational retrospective longitudinal study.

SETTING

Clinical placements of undergraduate nursing students from the University of Málaga, in hospitals and primary health care.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 4284 undergraduate nursing students, enrolled during seven consecutive years (2011-2018).

METHODS

Study data were obtained from students' notifications of adverse events during their clinical placements. The form for making this notification is available online, in the virtual campus for the practicum and notification is mandatory.

RESULTS

A total of 1638 reports of adverse events were made during the study period. The adverse events most commonly reported were clinical accidents, followed by sharp and needle-stick injuries, and medication errors. By clinical settings, adverse events occurring in critical care were most frequently reported (35.9%). By the severity of the event, the largest proportion (32.4%) were classified as serious. By the risk of recurrence, 49.8% of the events reported were classified as accidents that "could happen again at some time". In this respect, there were significant differences among the respondents, with fourth-year students reporting up to four times more events of this type than second and third-year students (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Nursing students are subject to clinical safety-related events during their practices, mostly concerning medication errors and sharps and needlestick injuries. The pattern of these events changes over time, as students evolve in their competences. To improve clinical safety competencies among student nurses, priority attention should be paid to medication management, dose calculations and reactions to situations of aggression and violence in healthcare settings.

First year undergraduate nursing students' perceptions of the effectiveness of blended learning approaches for nursing numeracy

The ability to safely calculate and administer medications are indispensable, core nursing skills in nursing education and practice. Therefore, it is imperative that nursing students are adequately prepared with the necessary numeracy skills during their undergraduate nursing studies. The focus of this study, conducted at a single multi-campus university in the western Sydney region of Australia, was to determine the effectiveness of a suite of blended learning approaches on numeracy self-efficacy from the students' perspective. Surveys were administered as part of the study and included open-ended questions. 525 students provided open-ended responses that were analysed by the research team. Four main themes were identified from the open-ended responses: (i) Self-realisation; (ii) Practice, practice, practice; (iii) Boosting confidence; and (iv) Wanting more. The themes captured students' perceptions of the benefits of having a rigorous learning design in blended learning approaches. The study showed that a structured pedagogical approach to nursing numeracy in undergraduate programs improved students' self-reported self-efficacy with mathematics and assisted students in realising the importance of learning and applying these skills as nursing clinicians.

The Effect of Smartphone-Based Application Learning on the Nursing Students' Performance in Preventing Medication Errors in the Pediatric Units

Medication errors (MEs) are potentially harmful patient safety events in all age groups. MEs are particularly hazardous in the pediatric population, especially with patients who require special attention due to the high incidence and severity of disease. This study aimed to determine the effect of a smartphone messenger application on nursing students' learning regarding the prevention of MEs in pediatric patients.

METHODS

We performed this quasi-experimental study with 80 nursing students who were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. We collected the data using a researcher-made checklist. We conducted learning through Telegram, a smartphone messenger application (app), for 3 weeks. We analyzed data using SPSS version 16.0 by utilizing descriptive and inferential statistics, and P < 0.05 was considered to be significant.

RESULTS

The mean age of the students was 23.5 ± 2.9 years. The majority of mistakes related to MEs in the control groups included the lack of proper control of the following: high risk medication administration, medication incompatibility interactions, medication administration card, medication dose calculations, adverse drug event recognition, pharmaceutical name recognition during drug selection, aseptic and sterile technique adherence, microbore IV tubing flush practices, IV drip rate adjustment, and medication administration schedules. The mean scores of students' performance were significantly different in the knowledge of preventing MEs between the 2 groups. (P = 0.022).

CONCLUSIONS

Smartphone learning with the Telegram messenger app improves nursing student knowledge regarding the prevention of MEs in pediatric patients. We recommend that this form of learning be used in nursing schools to prevent errors related to medication ordering, dosing, and administration.

Evaluation of Swedish nursing students' experience of a web-based platform for drug calculation

Safe drug calculation is important in nursing as insufficient skills pose a risk to patient safety. Therefor solid education in mathematics for undergraduate nursing students must be provided. To support nursing students' skills in drug calculation, a web-based learning platform for drug calculation was created. The aim of this study was to investigate nursing students' experiences of a web-based learning platform for drug calculation in terms of usability and learning support. The study was a cross-sectional comparative study. Ninety-five nursing students participated, out of which 46 students were in semester one and 49 students were in semester six. A questionnaire was used to evaluate the nursing students' experiences of a web-based learning platform for drug calculation in terms of usability and learning support. The findings were informed by statistical and thematic analyses. The majority of the participants evaluated the platform positively. The platform was deemed useful, and it was a support for the nursing students' learning. These findings provide that a web-based learning platform for drug calculation can be used as a complement to traditional lectures. Nevertheless, further research is required focusing teaching strategies facilitating different learning styles and level of computer skills.

The effectiveness of web-based learning in supporting the development of nursing students' practical skills during clinical placements: A qualitative study

Web-based learning, on its own or in combination with traditional teaching methods, has become a consolidated practice in many countries, and has been described as a valid and effective method that supports practical learning in undergraduate nursing students. The aim of this study was to explore the perception and effectiveness of web-based learning in facilitating the development of clinical skills in undergraduate nursing students. A qualitative descriptive study was conducted including online videos in three nursing schools of a university in Northern Italy. The participants were 26 undergraduate nursing students. A dedicated website was built including four videos and the respective checklists of four nursing techniques: insertion of a urinary catheter; insertion of a nasogastric tube; taking a blood sample; and the insertion of a peripheral intravenous line. Three Focus Groups were conducted, one for each nursing school. Thanks to its ease of use and unlimited access, web-based learning effectively supported students' clinical learning process by offering additional virtual visual support. Web-based learning could be effectively used to reduce the gap between theory and practice, and even as an upgrade for already qualified nurses.