The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of special needs students in technical educational programs.

MCur / Department of Advanced Nursing Science

Department of Advanced Nursing Science / MCur

Over the last 20 years the nursing profession has widely accepted reflective practices and reflective learning as effective measures to help students provide care in a frequently changing context. The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the role of nurse educators in the facilitation of reflective learning in students. The objectives were to explore the reflective teaching practices of nurse educators, describe the learning activities that could promote reflective learning in student nurses and to determine whether the learning environment is conducive to promote reflective teaching and learning. A quantitative, explorative, descriptive study was conducted in nursing education institutions in Gauteng. A total of 121 nurse educators completed a structured questionnaire. The findings revealed that, although nurse educators agree with the importance of reflective practices in the teaching and learning environment they do not necessarily place emphasis on developing their own reflective practices. Reflective learning was not identified as a formal learning approach in the programmes the nurse educators facilitated but the educators did attempt to include reflection in the teaching and learning activities planned. Not enough emphasis is placed on the creation of a teaching and learning environment that will enhance reflection in a non-threatening context. The deeper understanding of reflective learning comes with continued personal reflective practices. Nurse educators should be taught how to facilitate reflective learning activities and how to create an environment conducive to reflection. Through reflective teaching practices students could be supported in developing into critical thinkers hence reflective learning should be a formal teaching and learning approach in nursing curricula / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

Thesis (M.A. (Nursing)) -- University of Limpopo, 2018 / The implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and its impact on teaching and learning have not been researched in the Limpopo College of Nursing and, therefore, learner nurses' perceptions and nurse educators are not known. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the perceptions of learner nurses and nurse educators of the use of ICT in teaching and learning at the Limpopo College of Nursing (LCN). Upon obtaining clearance from the Turfloop Research Ethics Committee (TREC) to conduct the study, the College granted permission to conduct the study. Research employing the exploratory-descriptive qualitative research design was conducted to achieve the aim and objectives of this study. Data were collected from forty-seven (47) learner nurses and sixteen (16) nurse educators using focus group interviews. Data were audio-recorded, and field notes were written. Trustworthiness was ensured by applying Lincoln and Guba's trustworthiness criteria. Transferability was ensured by utilizing purposive sampling techniques to include all participants. Data were analyzed qualitatively by using Tech's open coding method. The study results indicated that there is no ICT implementation in teaching and learning at the LCN. Learner nurses complained about the unavailability of proper ICT infrastructure, the lack of training of all LCN stakeholders in the use of ICT, the lack of skills of the lecturers to facilitate the utilization of ICT platforms, and the lack of a structured curriculum that embraces ICT platforms. The results indicated that nurse educators were concerned about producing learners who are not familiar with ICT; however, nurse educators were willing to implement ICT, even though no training had been provided to both old and new staff on ICT use. The results indicated that the LCN employs no ICT personnel. It is recommended that on-going training of the learner nurses and nurse educators in the use of ICT facilities be considered to remedy the situation. The college management should take the initiative to provide ICT facilities that can serve all campuses.

The expectation of graduating nurses today is to be knowledgeable and responsive to rapidly changing technology in the health care environment. Although federal mandates, Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations, and nursing program accreditation initiatives are pushing an "informatics" healthcare agenda by promoting the implementation of electronic health record (EHR) systems by 2014 in all healthcare facilities, very few US nursing schools provide students with access and training in, EHR systems. In addition, nursing faculty may not have a clear understanding of healthcare informatics; the use of information and technology to communicate, manage knowledge, mitigate error, and support decision-making. Nursing education must address faculty issues related to this innovative paradigm in order to keep pace and participate as co-creators of relevant informatics technology curriculum that prepares graduates for real life workforce. Understanding the challenges, concerns, and successes in implementing informatics may help nurse educators as they develop curriculum and teach in this environment. This case study explores and describes, with nursing faculty of a small liberal arts college, faculty knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs) as they participate in an action research framed curriculum development program for informatics academic EHR (AEHR) integration. The research question:What is the experience of nursing educators and nursing faculty members involved in the integration of an AEHR project framed in the Learning by Developing model at a small liberal arts college school of nursing? Significant insights as participants in the study influenced nurse educators' ideas regarding collaborative curricular design, meaningful assignments, and the importance of feedback.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Despite outstanding employment opportunities and high demand to address the global nursing shortage, men who consider becoming nurses are less likely to enroll in and to graduate from nursing programs. Many barriers that men commonly encounter during nursing education have been found in the literature; however, there is a lack of theoretically based research that examines factors that help men succeed as they study nursing. Based on a conceptual model derived from O’Lynn’s construct of male friendliness in nursing education and Frankl’s theory of will to meaning and purpose in life, this study examined facilitators for men during nursing education. This was accomplished through the development and psychometric testing of the Survey of Facilitators for Men (SFM) in a sample of 145 men in nursing. Strong evidence of reliability and validity was provided for the SFM consisting of three subscales (Internal facilitators, External Connections facilitators, and Institutional facilitators). Internal facilitators consist of intrapersonal strengths, experiences, and motivators. External Connections facilitators are interpersonal connections that emerge from relationships that men develop. Institutional facilitators involve structural or organizational aspects of institutions that ease barriers. Testing provided satisfactory evidence of internal consistency (α = .85) and test-retest reliability (intraclass coefficient = .72; confidence interval = 0.57–0.83). Dimensionality of three facilitator subscales was supported by Principle Axis Factoring with Varimax rotation and satisfactory factor loadings (.49–.72). Support for the conceptual model was provided using multiple regressions explaining 17% of the variance in purpose in life [F(4, 140) = 6.99, p < .001], 13% of the variance in GPA [F(6, 114) = 2.88, p < .01], and 49% of the variance in perception of nursing success [F(9, 128) = 13.42, p < .001]. Purpose in life was associated with Internal facilitators and comfortable income, GPA was associated with External Connections facilitators and age at BSN, while perception of nursing success was associated with purpose in life, holding an MSN, having a comfortable income, and having children. Future research is warranted to determine the usefulness of the SFM in designing strategies to recruit and retain men in nursing programs.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Clinical nursing faculty members often work with students who underperform in the clinical area. Underperforming students are those who exhibit deficits in nursing knowledge, the application of nursing knowledge, psychomotor skills, motivation, and/or interpersonal skills. The outcomes of faculty work with underperforming students have implications for patient safety and the nursing workforce, yet little is known about how faculty work with underperforming students. The purpose of this project was to develop a theoretical framework that describes how clinical faculty work with underperforming students in the clinical area. Twenty-eight nursing faculty who had worked with underperforming nursing students during clinical rotations were interviewed and invited to tell stories about working with these students. Their narratives were analyzed using constant comparison analysis, and a theoretical framework was developed. The framework included three stages that unfolded as faculty worked with underperforming students over time. The first stage, Being Present, was the process by which faculty came to know students were underperforming. They did this by noticing red flags, taking extra time with students, working side-by-side with students, and connecting with students "where they were at." The second stage, Setting a New Course, was the process by which faculty attempted to provide remedial experiences to improve the performance of those students determined to be underperforming. The participants did this by beginning a new course of instruction for the students, bringing in new people to help the students, and creating new learning experiences for them. This process could result in students turning it [their performance] around, making it through [the clinical rotation], or not making it. The final stage, Being Objective, was the process by which participants made negative progression decisions. They did this by relying on objective indices, documenting problematic student behaviors, and obtaining validation for their decisions.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Educating a sufficient nursing workforce to provide high quality, compassionate, and ethical care to an increasingly diverse population is an ongoing challenge and opportunity for nurse educators. Current literature highlights the importance of engaging students in learning to strengthen student achievements. Fostering student engagement within nursing courses is particularly important. Grit (consistency of interest and perseverance of effort) is a factor that may be associated with student course engagement. Demographic characteristics of age, gender, race/ethnicity, prior education, degree program, and self-reported grade point average (GPA) also may be factors associated with student course engagement. Guided by a conceptual model derived from the literature, the purpose of this study was to determine whether grit and demographic characteristics were associated with student course engagement (skills, emotion, participation/interaction, and performance) within a nursing course. Using an exploratory, descriptive, cross-sectional design, a convenience sample of 97 nursing students in a didactic health assessment course was administered the Student Course Engagement Questionnaire (SCEQ), visual analog scales for student engagement, Grit-S Scale, and a Student Demographic Characteristics form. Using multiple regression, 22% of the variance (21% Adjusted) of total student engagement (SCEQ) was explained by total grit scores (Grit-S) F(1,95) = 26.54, p<.001. Further analyses of student engagement were conducted using the SCEQ subscales and visual analog scales with similar results. Findings provided support for the conceptual model used to guide the study, although replication of the study was recommended across varied learning environments. Findings warrant further study regarding grit as a potential area for the future development of strategies to foster engagement of nursing students in the classroom.

Background: The experience of stress and anxiety in nursing students can reach a high level because of fear of making an error or causing fatal harm to a patient. Unmitigated stress and anxiety can hinder learning and the performance of psychomotor skills in the clinical setting, eventually affecting patient care.Aim: This study aimed to examine anxiety, stress, self-efficacy for nursing clinical skills, and self-efficacy for therapeutic communication in undergraduate nursing students who were randomized to either an intervention with a standardized patient or the comparison group who participated in role play. Method: An experimental study with randomization was conducted with prelicensure nursing students (N = 87) recruited from associate and bachelor’s degree nursing programs in the Finger Lakes region of New York State, using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Clinical Skills Self-Efficacy Scale (CSES), and Self-Efficacy in Therapeutic Communication (SETC). Data collection occurred at preintervention, postintervention, and at follow-up, approximately 2 weeks after the intervention. Results: The first report describes the development of the Self-Efficacy for Therapeutic Communication Scale (SETC) developed by the principal investigator and used in this study. Exploratory factor analyses with a Varimax rotation of the 15 items yielded two factors accounting for 51.3% of the variance. Two subscales were formed by summing the items loading above .4 on each factor. The first subscale was Communication Techniques, which included 9 items and had a Cronbach’s alpha of .91 The second subscale was Intuitive Practices with 6 items and a Cronbach’s alpha of .79. The correlation between the two subscales was r = .67 (p < .001). Test-retest reliability for the scale from pre- to posttest was .68, pre- to follow-up was .41, and posttest to follow-up was .68. In the second report, Pearson’s r was used to determine that state anxiety, trait anxiety, and stress were highly correlated with each other, with a range of correlations, r = .53 to .91, p < .001. Inverse contemporaneous correlations were found for trait anxiety and for stress with self-efficacy for clinical skills at all time points, whereas state anxiety was inversely related to self-efficacy for clinical skills at posttest and follow-up. Inverse correlations for self-efficacy for therapeutic communication were statistically significant with state anxiety, trait anxiety, and stress, but only at posttest. In the third report, mixed Analysis of Variances (ANOVAs) determined that there was a statistically significant interaction between time and group on state anxiety scores, F(2, 170) = 3.551, p = .031, η2 = .040. Simple main effects analyses showed that the intervention and comparison group means did not differ at any of the three testing times. Paired samples t tests indicated that the scores on anxiety in the intervention group did not show any statistically significant change over time, whereas anxiety in the comparison group was significantly higher at follow-up than at any other time. Mixed ANOVAs showed no interaction between time and groups for self-efficacy for clinical skills or for self-efficacy for therapeutic communication. Results indicated that the intervention and comparison group means on self-efficacy for clinical skills and self-efficacy for therapeutic communication improved over time. Both intervention and comparison groups reported increased self-efficacy in clinical skills and therapeutic communication at follow-up data collection. In addition, two separate mixed ANOVAs were performed to determine if stress had a moderating effect on the intervention. Students in the high stress group (PSS greater than 18), did not experience a change in anxiety over time, while the comparison group of participants with low stress (scores less than or equal to 18), had significant changes in anxiety from pretest to follow-up and posttest to follow-up, while the intervention group did not. Conclusion: Stress and anxiety can have detrimental effects on nursing students’ self-efficacy for clinical skills and self-efficacy for therapeutic communication. Prioritizing and mitigating the effects of stress and anxiety to improve self-efficacy in nursing students is one way of preparing nursing students for competency-based education, as outlined in the American Association of Colleges of Nurses, The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education. Throughout the Domains of The Essentials, therapeutic communication is found in 13 competencies, indicating that this once considered soft skill, is a critical skill required for safe patient care. Teaching methods that include interactions with standardized patients and managing difficult conversations can be helpful for the nursing student to experience in pre-clinical preparation. Keywords: Anxiety, self-efficacy, standardized patients, therapeutic communication, clinical nursing skills