Bioscience learning in clinical placement: the experiences of pre-registration nursing students.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to explore student nurses' views and experiences of bioscience learning in clinical placement. The study focused on (1) how relevant students perceive bioscience knowledge to their professional role; (2) what opportunities students have to apply bioscience knowledge during clinical placements; (3) what students perceive about the support they receive from placement mentors regarding bioscience learning. BACKGROUND: Bioscience knowledge is required for safe and effective practice but is an area that students find challenging. Clinical placements offer students the ideal environment to integrate bioscience into clinical decision making. There is, however, a lack of research addressing specifically students' placement learning of bioscience. DESIGN: An explanatory sequential mixed methods approach was adopted. METHODS: The research involved two phases. In phase one predominantly quantitative data were collected via a survey. 112 final year BSc nursing students from across fields completed the survey (response rate = 66%). The results of this phase were then built upon by conducting three focus groups (n = 17) in a second qualitative research phase. RESULTS: Whilst students acknowledged the relevance of bioscience to their nursing role, this study suggests that its importance is not recognised as widely by practice educators. Findings highlight inconsistencies in the quality of mentor support, the opportunities for students to learn and the priority that bioscience is given in placement education. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the need for more explicit bioscience criteria in placement assessments and a greater level of mentor education to ensure more consistency in the standard of placement learning of bioscience. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Providing insight into factors that influence student learning of bioscience during clinical placements provides focus on how higher education institutions and practice educators can better support students to confidently apply bioscience knowledge to deliver safe and effective patient care.

Biosciences in nurse education: is the curriculum fit for practice? Lecturers' views and recommendations from across the UK.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study aims to review the biosciences component of preregistration nursing programmes in higher education institutions across the UK through the experiences and perceptions of lecturers involved in nursing education. BACKGROUND: Studies suggest that some qualified nurses lack confidence in explaining the bio-scientific rationale for their clinical practice. Biosciences can be difficult to understand and integrate into clinical decision-making and require protected time within preregistration nurse education. In the absence of explicit national guidelines, it is unclear as to the depth and extent biosciences are taught across different institutions and the level achieved at the point of registration. DESIGN: A survey approach was adopted to generate quantitative and qualitative feedback. METHODS: Data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire seeking the experiences and views of lecturers involved in teaching biosciences to nursing students across the UK. Data received from 10 institutions were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. RESULTS: Lecturers reported that the hours of taught biosciences ranged from 20-113 hours, principally within the first year. This represents between 0·4-2·4% of time within a preregistration nursing programme (4600 hours). Large group lectures predominate, supplemented by smaller group or practical work, and online materials. The biosciences are assessed specifically in half the institutions surveyed and as part of integrated assessments in the rest. In relation to student feedback, all respondents stated that students consistently requested more time and greater priority for biosciences in their programme. CONCLUSIONS: This survey suggests that the number of hours spent teaching biosciences is minimal and varies widely between higher education institutions. All respondents expressed concern about the challenges of teaching difficult bio-scientific concepts to large groups in such a limited time and called for greater clarity in national guidelines to ensure that all nurses are adequately educated and assessed in bioscience subjects. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Failure to understand the biosciences underpinning care has implications for safe and competent nursing.

BC Walks: replication of a communitywide physical activity campaign.

INTRODUCTION: Individuals not engaging in recommended amounts of moderate-intensity physical activity are deemed insufficiently active and are at greater risk of chronic disease. Social marketing strategies may promote positive changes in physical activity levels among insufficiently active individuals. METHODS: A quasi-experimental design was used to determine whether the results of a previous communitywide physical activity social marketing campaign conducted in Wheeling, WVa (population, 31,420) could be replicated in the larger community of Broome County, New York (population, 200,536). BC Walks promoted 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity daily walking among insufficiently active residents of Broome County, New York, aged 40 to 65 years. Promotion activities included paid advertising, media relations, and community health activities. Impact was determined by preintervention and postintervention random-digit-dial cohort telephone surveys in intervention and comparison counties. We assessed demographics, walking behavior, moderate and vigorous physical activity, and campaign awareness. RESULTS: The paid advertising included 4835 television and 3245 radio gross rating points and 10 quarter-page newspaper advertisements. News media relations resulted in 28 television news stories, 5 radio stories, 10 newspaper stories, and 125 television news promotions. Exposure to the campaign was reported by 78% of Broome County survey respondents. Sixteen percent of Broome County participants changed from nonactive to active walkers; 11% changed from nonactive to active walkers in the comparison county (adjusted odds ratio, 1.71; 95% confidence interval, 0.99-2.95). Forty-seven percent of Broome County respondents reported any increase in total weekly walking time, compared with 36% for the comparison county (adjusted odds ratio, 1.66; 95% confidence interval, 1.14-2.44). CONCLUSION: The BC Walks campaign replicated the earlier Wheeling Walks initiative, although increases in walking were smaller in the BC Walks campaign.