Can internship programs affect nursing students' critical thinking disposition, caring behaviors, and professional commitment?

BACKGROUND

Nursing students are given opportunities to develop critical thinking disposition, caring behaviors, and professional commitment through clinical training. Therefore, nurse educators should move away from traditional methods toward new ones, such as internship programs in clinical training. This study assessed the effect of nursing internship programs on senior undergraduate nursing students' critical thinking disposition, caring behaviors, and professional commitment.

METHODS

This quasi-experimental study was conducted using a pretest-posttest design but with no control group. The study sample included 46 senior students enrolled in nursing internship programs. A demographic questionnaire, the Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CTDI), the Caring Assessment Report Evaluation (Care-Q), and the Nursing Professional Commitment Scale (NPCS) were used to collect data before and five months after the nursing internship programs were implemented.

RESULTS

The study findings revealed that the senior nursing students' caring behaviors improved, but the total scores of critical thinking disposition and professional commitment did not change significantly after the nursing internship programs (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

According to the results, nurse educators are recommended to adopt strategies to improve the effectiveness of internship programs on critical thinking disposition and professional commitment among senior undergraduate nursing students.

Effectiveness of teaching strategies to improve critical thinking in nurses in clinical practice: a systematic review protocol

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this review is to identify and synthesize the best available evidence on the effectiveness of teaching strategies aimed at improving critical thinking (CT) in registered nurses who provide direct patient care. Specifically, the research question is: What are the best teaching strategies to improve CT skills in registered nurses who provide direct patient care?

BASES TEÓRICAS DE PENSAMENTO CRÍTICO NA ENFERMAGEM IBERO-AMERICANA: REVISÃO INTEGRATIVA DA LITERATURA

RESUMO Objetivo: identificar as bases teóricas que fundamentam os conceitos de pensamento crítico na enfermagem ibero-americana nos últimos dez anos. Método: revisão integrativa de literatura realizada nas bases de dados PubMed, CUIDEN e SciELO, entre 2006 e 2015, com as palavras-chave enfermagem e pensamento crítico. Resultados: foram incluídos 32 estudos, que revelaram a presença de nove pensadores como bases teóricas do conceito de pensamento crítico. Constatou-se que não há uniformidade para a definição do conceito; contudo, diferenciam-se duas concepções de pensamento crítico entre os autores, que foram organizadas em dois grupos. O grupo A, composto por Alfaro-Lefevre, Peter Facione, Scheffer e Rubenfeld, Richard Paul; autores que compreendem que o pensamento crítico envolve habilidades para raciocínio clínico e diagnóstico, essencial à tomada de decisões, e o grupo B, constituído por John Dewey, Donald Schön, Paulo Freire e Jürgen Habermas, que entendem o pensamento crítico como um processo ativo e reflexivo, voltado ao desenvolvimento da consciência crítica. Esses pensadores foram base para a proposta de instrumentos de avaliação do pensamento, estratégias de ensino e um referencial teórico-metodológico para a enfermagem. Conclusão: a perspectiva dinâmica do grupo B fortalece o caráter dialético da construção do conhecimento, a partir do qual a enfermagem tem potencial de construir-se como uma ciência social e prática, comprometida com a transformação de realidades.

Effectiveness of teaching strategies on the development of critical thinking in undergraduate nursing students: a meta-analysis

Abstract OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effectiveness of teaching strategies used for development of critical thinking (CT) in undergraduate nursing students. METHOD Systematic review with meta-analysis based on the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute . Searches were conducted in the following databases: PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE, Web of Science, SCOPUS, LILACS, Cochrane CENTRAL, PsycINFO, ERIC, and a database of theses from four continents. The initial selection and evaluation of studies and assessment of methodological quality was performed by two reviewers independently. RESULTS Twelve randomized clinical trials were included in the study. In the meta-analysis of the four studies included that evaluated the strategy of problem-based learning (PBL), compared to lectures, the effectiveness of PBL was demonstrated with statistical significance (SMD = 0.21 and 95% CI = 0.01 to 0.42; p = 0.0434) for the development of CT in undergraduate nursing students, and the studies were homogeneous (chi-square = 6.10, p = 0.106). CONCLUSION The effectiveness of PBL was demonstrated in the increase of overall CT scores. Further studies need to be conducted in order to develop, implement and evaluate teaching strategies that are guided in high methodological rigor, and supported in theoretical models of teaching and learning.