Journal of Caring Sciences
Year:2024 | Volume:13 | Issue:2|Papers Count:7

Introduction: One of the main areas that contributes to clarifying the significance of nursing students’ performance in the clinical context is clinical learning. However, the theory-practice gap has long been an issue for clinical learning for nursing students. This study sought to explore the experiences and perceptions of nursing student when applying theory into practice during their clinical learning. Methods: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted with 10 senior nursing students using face-to-face interviews. These interviews were audio-taped and transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a qualitative thematic analysis. Results: Three themes emerged upon analysis: academic contribution to the theory-practice gap, clinical environment contribution to the theory-practice gap, and effects of the theory-practice gap. Seven sub-themes emerged including educator contribution to the theory-practice gap, student contribution to the theory-practice gap, supporting facility contribution to the theory-practice gap, clinical instructor contribution to the theory-practice gap, clinical field contribution to the theory-practice gap, effects of the theory-practice gap to the academic field and effect of the theory-practice gap to the clinical field. Conclusion: This study provides an overview of experiences and perceptions of nursing students on theory-practice gaps during clinical learning. Further research using in-depth focus group interviews in a wider population may provide more explanatory and useful information for nursing education to better manage learning process.

Introduction: This study addresses the imperative in contemporary nursing education to prepare students for diverse healthcare settings by exploring nursing students’ expectations and perceptions of preceptorship programs, emphasizing the role of evidence-based educational strategies. The research aims to bridge the existing literature gap and contribute valuable insights into strategically designing preceptorship programs aligned with nursing students’ needs, preferences, and aspirations, ultimately enhancing precepting practices and relationships within nursing education. Methods: Employing a sequential explanatory mixed method, 140 nursing students, from various colleges in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) participated in the study. A structured questionnaire, encompassing demographic information, a need assessment survey, and a survey on expectations on preceptors was administered. A focus group discussion was conducted to identify perceived barriers to the utilization of preceptorship practices in nursing colleges. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, the chi-square test, exploratory factor analysis, and content analysis of the focus group discussion. Results: The majority of participants expressed a high need for a preceptorship program, providing empirical evidence to support the development of a nurse educator preceptorship program in colleges and institutes. Preceptorship was identified as a significant contributor to career growth and achievement for nursing students, serving as a valuable tool to establish professional competency throughout their careers. Conclusion: There is a complex demand and high expectations for the core role of nurse educators as preceptors in the field of nursing education. This pioneering study sheds light on the need and perception of nursing students for a preceptorship program in the nursing curriculum.

Introduction: Due to the type and nature of hospitalized psychiatric patients, nurses encounter many ambiguous and complex clinical situations that require intuitive decision-making. The present study was conducted to determine the use of intuition and its barriers and facilitators among psychiatric nurses. Methods: This study adopts a descriptive cross-sectional design and employs 123 nurses using convenience sampling in 2022. Demographic characteristics, the use of intuition in clinical practice, and the barriers and facilitators of intuition in clinical practice questionnaires were used for data collection. Results: The results of this study showed that the mean (SD) of intuitive decision-making among psychiatric nurses was 58 (13. 07) out of a range from 25-125. The use of intuition had a statistically significant correlation with age and work experience in the psychiatry ward. The use of intuitive decision-making has a statistically significant difference in gender, work shift, and education level. The biggest barrier to the use of intuitive decision-making among psychiatric nurses was “The limitations of nursing role which restrict the use of intuition in the clinical setting”. The most common facilitator in the use of intuition among psychiatric nurses was “having experience and clinical knowledge leads to the use of intuition in patient care”. Conclusion: Given the low level of the use of intuition and the important role of intuitive decision-making in the quality of nursing care, nursing managers should provide some strategies for reducing the barriers to the use of intuition among nurses.

Introduction: Many researchers utilize self-reports to evaluate the prevalence of diseases. However, the accuracy of these self-reports remains uncertain in various studies. The objective of this particular study was to validate self-reported cases of diabetes among adults aged 35-70 years participating in the Shahedieh Cohort Study (SHCS). Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the first phase of SHCS during 2015-2017. The study included 1000 Iranian adults aged 35-70 years. The Gold standard for diabetes was determined by measuring fasting blood sugar (FBS) and evaluating the history of treatment and use of diabetes medications. To assess self-report validity, various statistical indices such as sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values (NPVs), accuracy, positive likelihood ratio (LR+), negative likelihood ratio (LR-) and AUC were used. The agreement between self-reported diabetes and the gold standard was assessed using kappa statistics. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 13 and R 4. 3. 1 software. Results: The study findings indicated that the prevalence of diabetes was 18% according to self-report and 19. 9% according to the gold standard measurement. The self-report accuracy was 95. 67%. There was perfect agreement (kappa=0. 86) between the self-report and gold standard criteria. The AUC, sensitivity and specificity of self-reported diabetes were 0. 937, 93. 82% and 96. 08%, respectively. Additionally, the results suggested that the self-report of diabetes was more valid in individuals with a normal body mass index (BMI) and without a family history of diabetes in first-degree relatives. Conclusion: The results showed that in the absence of diabetes control programs, self-report of diabetes is reliable and recommended.

Introduction: Pregnant women and their fetuses are considered as high-risk groups during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors of adverse pregnancy outcomes among women with COVID-19. Methods: This case-control study was conducted among pregnant women who delivered live infants at least 60 days before data collection in Hormozgan Province, south of Iran, 2021. The case and control groups included women with and without the history of COVID-19, respectively. A 47-item checklist including demographic information of the mothers, maternal current and past medical history, maternal and fetal prenatal and post-natal outcomes,and other COVID-19 related outcomes was used. The logistic regression analysis was used for data analysis. Results: A total of 1337 women (668 in case and 669 in control groups) participated in this study. The mean (SD) gestational age in the case and control groups were 32. 83 (84. 64) and 23. 75 (6. 93) weeks respectively. Maternal age and the incidence of abortion, obesity, and multiple pregnancies was higher in the COVID-19 group compared with the control group. The most common COVID-19 symptoms were myalgia (24. 8%), cough (19. 3%), fever (17. 5%) and olfactory disorder (14. 3%). The preventive factors against COVID-19 adverse pregnancy outcomes were low and normal body mass index, influenza vaccination history, and multivitamin consumption, while the risk factors were multiple pregnancies, abortion and preterm labor. Conclusion: This study showed that pregnant women were to COVID-19. The identified risk factors for COVID-19 adverse pregnancy outcomes can be used to prioritized pregnant women in receiving COVID-19 related health services.

Introduction: This scoping review study was conducted with the aim of identifying dimensions of trust in medical care, common trust subjects, and medical trust correlates among available instruments. Methods: We carried out a scoping review of literature through Medline, EMBASE, Scopus, Google Scholar engine, and various information sources of grey literature, to identify eligible studies up to 2023. We merely included psychometric studies in these areas. Non-psychometrics studies were excluded. Two assessors independently and carefully chose papers and abstracted records for qualitative exploration. Results: Fifty-two studies (n=37228 participants) were included in the review. The majority of the participants 67 % (24943) were adults (≥18). One-dimensionality trust was found in 36 % (19) of trust in medical care studies, while multidimensionality was identified in 64 % (33) of the studies. Ten categories of trust in medicine correlates or associates were identified. In terms of trust scales subjects, about 71 % (37) of the scales measured trust in healthcare professions, 14 % (7) health care systems, and the rest were about emergency department, trauma care emergency department, health care team, technology, authorities, telemedicine, insurer, COVID-19 prevention policies, performance, and general trust. Conclusion: Various tools have been developed and validated in the field of trust in healthcare, and several domains have been identified. Trust in medicine is correlated by a variety of factors such as patient characteristics, healthcare provider factors, healthcare organization features, health conditions, and social influences. It is suggested that researchers pay more attention to the most commonly known dimensions in preparing tools.

Introduction: Undergraduate nursing students often work part-time or even full-time while studying at university completing their bachelor’s degrees. The aim of this study is to explain the meaning of the lived experiences of nursing students working as students in clinical field. Methods: A phenomenological study was conducted at the nursing and midwifery school of Tabriz, Iran. Purposefully, 20 baccalaureate nursing students with experience working as student worker nurses were recruited. The sample size was determined according to data saturation. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were held with the participants over 3 months (April 2020 to June 2020), and Van Manen’s hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used to analyze the data. Results: Five main themes extracted from the data analysis, including “students’ clinical competency”, “nurse-student relationships”, “shift work”, “mislearning”, and “chaotic wards”. A further 12 sub-themes extracted under the five main themes. Conclusion: The work of nursing students in clinical environments as student worker nurses is a two-dimensional phenomenon with advantages and disadvantages. The benefits are improving the nursing students’ clinical and communication skills, increasing their self-confidence, learning and practicing discipline and nursing responsibilities, and the disadvantages are facing reality shock stress, and mislearning.