Critical Care Nursing Instructors’ Perception of Clinical Education Competencies: A Qualitative Study

Clinical education competencies are among core requirement for critical care nurse instructors, contributing toward better learning outcomes for students in clinical settings. Awareness of nursing instructors' perceptions is essential for designing professional nursing development programs. This study explored critical care nursing instructors' perceptions of the essential competencies for clinical education. A qualitative design based on the content analysis approach, was used. Fifteen critical care nursing instructors from Lorestan University of Medical Sciences were selected via a purposeful sampling method. Data were collected using a semi-structured, in-depth interview method. The interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using Graneheim and Lundman methods. Analysis of data identified four main categories and eight subcategories. The main categories included (I) tasks-oriented education, (II) guiding and supporting nursing students, (III) organizing communication skills, and (IV) professional-ethical role modeling. Although academic clinical faculties and part-time critical care nursing instructors reported a high level of knowledge and confidence in their ability to establish communication skills, role modeling, and nursing students' supervision; part-time critical care nursing instructors also identified the need for additional support for their clinical teaching roles. They were not prepared enough for clinical teaching; their perception of clinical educational skills was task-oriented education. The development, implementation, and evaluation of a curriculum based on clinical competency with structured mentoring processes for part-time critical care nursing instructors are recommended to meet the knowledge gap created.

کلیدواژه ها:

Clinical competence ، Critical Care ، nursing instructors ، Clinical Education