Determining the effectiveness of a virtual service /patient-based education program on patient care and clinical decision-making in nursing: A quasi-experimental study.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a virtual service/patient-based program (vSPBP) developed for nursing education and its effect on the development of care plan preparation and clinical decision-making skills.

Methods: The study was conducted in a quasi-experimental design with a sample of fourth-year nursing students. Participants were assigned to the intervention group (n=44) and control group (n=51). The intervention group participated in a full-day vSPBP in addition to clinical training, whereas the control group received only the clinical training. Both groups were evaluated at the end of the intervention for care planning skills and at the beginning, middle, and end of the academic year for clinical decision-making skills. The Modified Simulation Effectiveness Tool (mSET) and focused group interview were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the vSPBP; nursing students' Clinical Decision-Making in Nursing Scale (CDM-NS) and Care Plan Evaluation Form were used to evaluate learning outcomes. Quantitative data were analyzed using the t-test and ANOVA. Qualitative data were analyzed by three researchers, and themes were identified. Ethical permissions were obtained from the relevant units.

Results: The total score of the Turkish Version of the mSET was 84.39±12.08 (51-95) and the education program was found to be highly effective. The mean care plan preparation skills scores of the intervention and control groups were 44.84±2.77 and 27.75±4.28 (0-50), respectively, and the total scores of the CDM-NS (at the last measurement) were 147.90±11.28 and 146.42±12.21. While there was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups in the ability to prepare a care plan (p=0.001), there was no difference between the groups in clinical decision-making skills over time (p=0.433), between the second and third measurements over time (p>0.05), but both measurements increased significantly compared with the first measurement (p=0.000).

Conclusion: The vSPBP was determined to be an effective learning activity for the development of care plan preparation and clinical reasoning skills, as well as effective in closing the gap between theoretical and clinical knowledge and adaptation to the nursing process when applied in an integrated manner with the existing nursing program.