J Nurs Educ
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Human patient simulators: a new face in baccalaureate nursing education at Brigham Young University.
Simulation has been used to augment learning in the health care professions. The human patient simulator (HPS) has been used primarily by medical students but is now being used by nursing students, as well. This study explored the benefits and limitations of using an HPS as a patient substitute for one day of actual clinical experience for junior nursing students. Learning outcomes included increased student knowledge, ability, and confidence in medication administration.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Development and testing of a CD-ROM based tutorial for nursing students: getting ready for HIPAA.
The purpose of this study was to develop and test a CD-ROM tutorial for nursing students to educate them on how the rules and regulations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) affect them as they engage in patient care activities in hospitals. The project was completed in two parts, the first of which was production of a stand-alone, audio lecture, image and text self-instruction on CD-ROM to distribute to students as they began their clinical experience. The second part compared the effectiveness of learning the HIPAA content via CD-ROM to a text-directed, self study method. ⋯ The students' scores were analyzed before and after the instruction, and the methods of instruction were compared. The study findings demonstrated significant differences between experimental-group and control-group students' performance on a knowledge test of HIPAA, as well as overall satisfaction with learning the material by CD-ROM among students who used it. The tutorial is now available for all students, and the Web-based examination provides automatic scoring to a preestablished competence level.
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Comparative Study
The effect of teaching method on objective test scores: problem-based learning versus lecture.
This study investigated the effect of teaching method on objective test scores of students in a school of nursing. The hypothesis stated there was a difference between objective test scores of students who were taught content on diabetes using problem-based learning (PBL) and students taught the same content using the traditional lecture method. ⋯ Both the pretest and posttest scores of the two groups were compared using an independent t test, and no statistically significant difference was found in the scores of the two groups. The results of this study support the null hypothesis: that there is no difference in objective test scores based on teaching method (lecture versus PBL).
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
A comparison of teaching strategies: lecture notes combined with structured group discussion versus lecture only.
In this study, we compared two teaching strategies: lecture notes combined with structured group discussion versus lecture only. We sought to help nurse educators identify the most effective teaching strategies for nursing students. We compared the examination scores of two groups of students who took a 3-credit medical-surgical nursing course. ⋯ However, no statistically significant difference existed between the course-passing rate of students in the experimental group and that of students in the control group. These results provide strong support for the use of lecture notes in conjunction with structured group discussion as a teaching strategy. We recommend replicating this study using samples from other courses, and conducting further studies that include students' NCLEX-RN results as a third dependent variable.
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Let's get our priorities straight. As we continue the essential educational upgrading of the profession through research-focused doctoral programs, and through the new CNL and DNP programs, let's be sure that at least some of these programs attend to the critical need for well-prepared nursing faculty (i.e., provide opportunities for and encourage students to take advanced coursework in nursing education). ⋯ For example, let's recognize, value, and reward the important role master's-prepared nurses, especially those with advanced coursework in nursing education, can and must play in our basic programs. And let's be sure that we have faculty in our ranks who have the training, aptitude, and credentials to conduct the research so critical to progress in nursing education.