Novel Technologies in Nurse Practitioner Education: An Integrative Review
TL;DR
It was suggested that integrating advanced clinical learning technologies into nurse practitioner programs should be prioritized, and five primary themes emerged, including student uptake, change management, accessibility, and confidence.
Abstract
The use of technology in healthcare education is rapidly expanding. Undergraduate nursing programs have integrated advanced technologies such as high-fidelity simulation, immersive virtual reality, augmented reality, and holographic simulations to support learning and improve retention in both in-person and distance learning. Meanwhile, little is known about the use of these clinical learning technologies in nurse practitioner education. This integrative review involved a systematic search of five databases: CINAHL, ERIC (ProQuest), MedLine (OVID), Google Scholar, and PubMed. Eleven studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and were analyzed for major themes. Five primary themes emerged, including (a) student uptake, (b) student learning, (c) change management, (d) accessibility, and (e) confidence. Findings suggested that integrating advanced clinical learning technologies into nurse practitioner programs should be prioritized. Going forward, focus should turn to establishing nurse practitioner program best practices for integrating clinical learning technologies, budgetary considerations, ongoing evaluation of learning outcomes, and theory development. Work in these areas may support the enhanced use of clinical learning technologies while providing educational institutions, nurse practitioner programs and public funders with the necessary data to inform future planning and further implementation of new technologies.