Iranian Journal of Medical Education

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Introduction: To analyze patients' problems and make an appropriate care plan, nursing students need a deep and meaningful learning. Therefore, it is better to choose educational methods which are capable of educating nursing students in such learning level. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of concept mapping and integration model on nursing students' learning in nursing process course. Methods: In a quasi-experimental study with two groups, pre-test post-test design, 45 second semester nursing students were selected through convenient sampling method and randomly divided into two experiment and control groups. After pretest, control and experiment groups received education using integration method and concept mapping, respectively, for 10 sessions during 2 months. Then, they took the post-test. For gathering data, an achievement test consisted of two parts was used which evaluated students’ knowledge and meaningful learning in nursing process course. The results were analyzed using chi-square test, independent and paired t-tests by SPSS software. Results: Both educational strategies were useful in enhancing students' knowledge and meaningful learning. But, the mean difference of pre and post tests in meaningful learning had a significant difference between the two groups. Conclusion: Considering the effect of concept mapping method on students’ meaningful learning, it is recommended to employ this method in teaching courses which require a deep learning and high level of understanding the content.

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Introduction: Development of critical thinking and clinical education has remained a serious and considerable challenge throughout the nursing educational system in Iran. Education experts believe that effective teaching methods such as concept mapping and nursing process are practical strategies for critical development. Thus, this study was carried out to compare the effectiveness of clinical concept mapping and nursing process in developing critical thinking skills among nursing students. Methods: This is a clinical trial. 41 nursing students who studied in 4th semester at Isfahan University of medical sciences were randomly divided in nursing process, and clinical concept mapping groups. They were asked to prepare a concept map or nursing process for their patient weekly. They were filled The California Critical Thinking Skills (form B) in the first and last day of their course as well as 1 month after study. Data analysis was done using t-test and ANOVA. Results: The results indicated that the students within the clinical concept-mapping group had not developed in any of the 5-fold critical thinking skills. There was no significant difference between their scores (in the first and last day of their course as well as 1 month after study). On the contrary, the results showed that the students’ critical thinking skill in the nursing process group had developed in inference and inductive thinking throughout the study. In 1 month after study, there was a significant difference between the mean score of this group’s critical thinking skills. In the two groups, in each point of study, the total mean of critical thinking scores were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Even though it is impossible to draw a definite conclusion due to sample size and time limitation, the present evidence indicated that nursing process could be more effective in critical thinking development. Further research with more time can be useful for evidence-based decision-making.

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Introduction: One of the most important approaches in nursing practice is using the nursing process model. Yet, according to the existing information, this systematic method is not widely used in Iran. Therefore, the objective of this research was to study nursing students’ opinions about a nursing process mobile software (as a means for facilitating nursing process implementation) for bedside use. Methods: This research is a pre-experimental study on 30 nursing students in 2011. The mobile software was developed according to the leaning objectives regarding nursing process in cardiology ward. It was provided to nursing students enrolled in the cardiac ward training rotation in a teaching hospital in Ahwaz. At the end of rotation, the viewpoints of the nursing students were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire. Results: According to the most students, their knowledge and skills in nursing process was satisfactorily improved after using the software. In general, 86%. of students claimed high satisfaction rate about software. Conclusion: Using this software and similar tools can improve clinical skills of nursing students and encourage them to learn and implement the nursing process and thus prepare them for nursing care in clinic.

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  Abstract

  

  Introduction : Electronic technology has been developed in health system like other areas. Application of electronic software for nursing process can facilitate this service. Foreign software cannot be an appropriate one for domestic use in terms of its language, clinical situations, cultural factors, and social variables. As a result, the aim of this study is to design and assess the local nursing process computerized software.

  Methods : This study was conducted in two phases of software design and assessment. The first phase was implemented in 4 stages of “developing the steps of nursing process in accordance software”, “algorithm design”, “test” and “final revision”. The second phase included a pilot study with participation of 20 students and nurses performed in ICU ward of Ghaem hospital in Mashhad. These individuals performed nursing process on three clients using the newly designed software. Then their opinions were taken using a validated and reliable researcher-made questionnaire for assessing the software. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and mann withney.

  Results: First phase of the study encompassed designing the software software menus included data base menu, patient's background information, registration of nursing process, setting, alarm, and help. In second phase, the results of pilot study showed that 81.3% of participants rated software as good or very good. The main advantages of the software, according to 90% of nurses, related to accuracy and preciseness of data compared to handwritten documents and facilitating the arrangement of client’s problems and according to 100% of the students, simplicity, sharing the labor, assessing the warning signs, and avoiding errors. The average of software evaluation scores by students was (84.3±5.83) out of 100 which is significantly higher than that of nurses (73.2±1.13, p =0.02).

  Conclusion : Development of the local nursing software in accordance with our health system was feasible and associated with satisfaction among nurses and students. Application of this software leads to increased accuracy, decreased error, and shared labor that are counted as factors promoting patient care services.

 

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Short Communication