Learning Experience of Chinese Nursing Students during Clinical Practicum: A Descriptive Qualitative Study

Nursing students' readiness towards the 'new normal' in clinical practice: a distributed cognition qualitative perspective

BACKGROUND

Clinical practicums are a core component of baccalaureate nursing education. Following the coronavirus pandemic, there have been extensive changes in the workforce environment that may potentially affect nursing students' experience and readiness for clinical practicums.

METHODS

A qualitative study was conducted to explore final-year nursing students' experiences and readiness for their final clinical practicum before becoming a registered nurse. A purposive sample of 24 final-year baccalaureate nursing students was included in this study. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted face-to-face via Zoom. The data was analysed using an inductive thematic analysis approach.

RESULTS

Three themes depicting students' experiences and clinical readiness were elucidated. The themes included: (1) Experiencing multiple concerns, (2) requiring a network of support, and (3) easing the transition to professional practice. Students considered the final clinical practicum as challenging and demanding which evoked numerous concerns.

CONCLUSIONS

Considering the stress that final-year nursing students experience, it will be important to devise strategies ranging from personal, relational, and environmental protective factors to enable their successful transition and completion of clinical practice.

Mentoring Support Quality in Group and Individual Mentoring Approaches during Nursing Clinical Training: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Clinical training is an essential element in nursing education, the outcomes of which are directly related to the quality of mentoring support. This quasi-experimental study aimed to examine whether the group or individual form of the mentoring approach used and the order of application of the mentoring approach contribute to the quality of mentoring support provided to students. The study comprised two measurement points with 130 nursing students, divided into two groups with different orders of application of the mentoring approach. The validated Mentoring Support Quality Evaluation Questionnaire (MSEQ) was used. Students in both groups rated the quality of mentoring support as higher following an individual mentoring approach. A significant interaction was found between the mentoring approach used and the order in which the mentoring approaches were applied (p = 0.002). The individual mentoring approach contributed significantly to a higher quality of mentoring support after the second round of clinical training (p = 0.021), while after the first round, the difference between the group and individual approaches was not as clear. The results suggest that not only the form of the mentoring approach but also the sequence of changes in the mentoring approach should be planned when implementing clinical training.

Perception of Nursing Students About Effective Clinical Teaching Environments: A Multi-Country Study

Background

The transition of nursing education from traditional methods to more advanced approaches is crucial for adequately preparing students to deliver competent care in tertiary care centers. Moreover, clinical faculty in nursing plays a key role in guiding nursing students through their clinical training in various healthcare settings.

Purpose

This study aims to describe the perceptions of undergraduate nursing students regarding the effectiveness of the learning environment and clinical teaching in clinical areas across various countries.

Methods

The study, conducted using a descriptive, cross-sectional research design, gathered data from 215 nursing students using the Clinical Learning Environment Inventory and Clinical Teaching Effectiveness Instrument. Data analysis included frequencies, percentages, mean, standard deviation, t-tests, analysis of variance, and correlation assessments to comprehend the impact of clinical teaching and learning environments.

Results

Nursing students' perceptions of the clinical learning environment produced mean scores between 2.03 and 3.38 on a scale from 1 to 4, resulting in an overall mean score of 2.72 across 42 items. This indicates a general satisfaction with their clinical learning experiences. Regarding effective clinical teaching, the mean student responses varied from 3.02 to 3.40 out of a possible 5 points, with a total mean of 3.22. The study revealed notable correlations in the context of effective clinical teaching, particularly with demographic variables and the clinical learning environment. Specifically, a significant correlation with age (r = .177, p = .009) and the clinical learning environment (r = .572, p < .001) was identified.

Conclusion

The study concludes that students expressed overall satisfaction with their clinical learning experiences. They recognized the importance of participating in clinical training, fulfilling clinical responsibilities for assigned patients, exerting extra effort for learning, receiving support from preceptors in clinical settings, and being attentive to communications from staff. The collaboration between clinical preceptors and academic nursing lecturers is crucial in providing a positive learning environment for students to complete clinical tasks effectively.

A Technology-Supported Guidance Model to Increase the Flexibility, Quality, and Efficiency of Nursing Education in Clinical Practice in Norway: Development Study of the TOPP-N Application Prototype

BACKGROUND

The challenges of nursing shortage in the nursing profession and of limited nursing educational capacity in nursing education in clinical practice need to be addressed to ensure supply according to the demand of these professionals. In addition, communication problems among nursing students, nurse educators, and nurse preceptors; variations in the guidance competence of nurse preceptors; and limited overview from nurse educators on nursing students' clinical practice are common challenges reported in several research studies. These challenges affect the quality of nursing education in clinical practice, and even though these problems have been highlighted for several years, a recent study showed that these problems are increasing. Thus, an approach is required to ensure the quality of nursing education in clinical practice.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to develop a guidance and assessment application to meet the challenges reported in clinical practice. The application intended to increase the flexibility, quality, and efficiency of nursing education in clinical practice. Furthermore, it intended to increase interactive communication that supports guidance and ensure structured evaluation of nursing students in clinical practice.

METHODS

This study employed a multidisciplinary user-participatory design. Overall, 23 stakeholders from the project team (ie, 5 researchers, 2 software developers, 1 pedagogical advisor, and 15 user representatives [4 educators, 6 preceptors, and 5 students]) participated in a user-centered development process that included workshops, intervention content development, and prototype testing.

RESULTS

This study resulted in the creation of the Technology-Optimized Practice Process in Nursing (TOPP-N) guidance and assessment application for use as a supportive tool for nursing students, nurse preceptors, and nurse educators in clinical practice. The development process included the application's name and logo, technical architecture, guidance and assessment module, and security and privacy.

CONCLUSIONS

This study offers insights into the development of an evidence-based technological tool to support nursing students, nurse preceptors, and nurse educators in clinical practice. Furthermore, the developed application has the potential to meet several challenges reported in nursing education in clinical practice. After a rigorous development process, we believe that the TOPP-N guidance and assessment application prototype is now ready to be tested in further intervention studies.

Coping with the Experience of Bad Sleep and Fatigue Associated with the Nursing Clinical Practicum

Nursing students experience anxiety during clinical practicum, which may interfere with their learning of clinical practice. This study explored the practicum anxiety symptom experience of clinical nursing students. The methodology was mixed research design consist of questionnaire and a qualitative research design following a grounded theory approach. Research data were gathered via theoretical sampling from 37 female college nursing students practicing in a Central Taiwan hospital and analyzed using the content analysis method. The mean age of the subjects was 20.7 ± 1.35 years old. The practicum-related anxiety symptom experience was made up of core dimensions associated with the nursing clinical practicum, such as bad sleep and fatigue, and covered six themes. Students first encountered anxiety-inducing situations in the clinical setting, and then they began coping through self-adaptation and teachers' help. In cases of coping failure, students began to have a bad sleep in the night and then felt tired and fatigued all day. These themes became a repeating cycle during the clinical practicum. This conceptual model shows that students experienced bad sleep and fatigue as a result of anxiety symptoms during the clinical practicum. Bad sleep and fatigue are critical anxiety symptoms for nursing students in clinical practice. Nursing teachers should pay attention to bad sleep and fatigue in nursing students and help students to improve their mental and physical health.