Statement of problem:
Higher education programmes are under unprecedented pressure to increase pre-registration nursing enrolment. With the current global nursing shortage and a projected shortfall of 9 million nurses and midwives by 2030 (World Health Organisation [WHO}, 2016), it is crucial to assess the effectiveness of existing clinical placement models in nursing programmes. Educational institutions face the challenge of accelerating nursing graduates to address workforce shortages, whilst also ensuring that clinical placements are both high quality and cost effective. These placements are essential in preparing students to transition into practice as competent work-ready nurses. They play a critical role in familiarising students with profession and setting expectations for their future goals.
Aim:
The scoping review focused on answering the following two questions:
What is the most cost-effective method to structure nursing clinical placements to prepare clinically competent, work-ready graduates?
And
What measures are used to determine the clinical competence and work readiness of undergraduate registered nursing students and the cost-effectiveness of their clinical placements?
Methods:
A scoping review was undertaken to understand the extent and type of evidence related to undergraduate (or pre-registration) nursing student clinical placement models and their characteristics, focusing on outcome measures of cost-effectiveness, clinical competence, and work readiness.
Results:
The Scoping review yielded 52 publications, with the majority from Australia, USA, and Canada (37 Primary research publications, seven discussion papers, one government report, five literature reviews, and two quality improvement activities) revealing that there are 28 different named clinical placement models for pre-registration nursing students. This inconsistency in terminology impacts the ability to compare clinical placement models to identify the cost-effectiveness of each model. The authors of this review propose that there are four discrete clinical placement model types that are used for pre-registration nursing students’ clinical education. These will be presented.
Conclusions: There is a need for a universal terminology for clinical placement models to ensure consistency, and the ability to ascertain cost effectiveness.