This study shows that students experience enhanced clinical preparedness, strengthened professional identity, and improved communication skills through the use of AI-simulated patients in nursing education, and suggests that AI-based simulations can complement traditional teaching methods while boosting students' learning motivation.
Abstract
Background
The development of clinical skills is essential in nursing education, yet limited access to real practice areas restricts students' experience. AI-simulated patients offer a promising solution by providing safe interview opportunities, enhancing communication skills, and supporting professional role development.
Aim
To determine the experiences of nursing students who interviewed artificial intelligence-simulated patients.
Methods
This descriptive phenomenological study involved one-to-one interviews with 15 first-year nursing students who have experience of interviewing artificial intelligence-simulated patients. Data were analyzed using Giorgi's Phenomenological Method Analysis and reported according to the COREQ checklist.
Results
Five main themes emerged: Experiencing a Sense of Clinical Reality with AI-Based Education, Developing Reflective Communication Skills, Gaining Confidence for Future Clinical Practice, Emerging Professional Identity, and Increase in Learning Motivation. Students reported that their interviews with AI-simulated patients contributed positively to preparing them for real clinical settings, strengthening their communication skills, and enhancing their perception of professional identity.
Conclusion
This study shows that students experience enhanced clinical preparedness, strengthened professional identity, and improved communication skills through the use of AI-simulated patients in nursing education. The findings suggest that AI-based simulations can complement traditional teaching methods while boosting students' learning motivation.
Simulation can enhance nursing students' education by providing real-world practice learning experiences. However, finding opportunities for children's nursing students to work with children as simulated patients can be challenging due to safeguarding and consent issues and practical difficulties. This article details the evaluation of a pilot simulation session which involved 59 first-year preregistration children's nursing students practising physiological assessments and communication skills with 59 primary school children. After the session, which took place at the children's school, the students were asked to complete a survey. The vast majority of respondents thought that the simulation activity had enhanced their skills and confidence for their forthcoming first clinical placement. The children rated their experience using an adapted 'smiley faces' scale and their feedback was overwhelmingly positive. The findings show that using children as simulated patients can enrich students' practice learning, foster the development of a professional identity and help prepare them for practice.
Helen Reddy, L. Holliday, Louise Clarke et al.· Nursing children and young p...· 0 citations
BACKGROUND
During clinical practice, nursing students interact with healthcare professionals, clinical instructors, patients, and families, creating a complex experience that prepares them for their professional lives. This complexity may also lead to negative learning experiences; therefore, it is crucial to understand how students perceive the clinical environment. The purpose of this study was to determine nursing students' experiences of transferring classroom learning into clinical practice.
METHODS
This descriptive phenomenological study was conducted with 40 s-year nursing students over a 14-week period during the 2019-2020 academic year using an online diary form. The inclusion criterion was taking the "Surgical Diseases Nursing" course for the first time. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi's seven-stage method.
RESULTS
Students experienced both positive and negative emotional reactions during clinical practice. Practical skills were developed by observing healthcare professionals and integrating theoretical knowledge with clinical practice. The sense of belonging was reinforced when students applied their knowledge while participating in patient care. Structured around four major themes-emotionality, embodied practice, professional identity, and the clinical collective-the findings revealed that learning transfer is a transformative process of 'embodied knowing,' shaped by emotional intensity and interpersonal interactions. Nursing students' participation, professional belonging, and motivation were increased by positive interactions with healthcare professionals, patients, and peers.
CONCLUSIONS
The results explain how the gap between theoretical and clinical education can be addressed through the lens of experiential learning. To effectively reduce the theory-practice gap and transform clinical encounters into professional competence, nursing curricula must strategically incorporate structured mentorship, regular reflective practices, and robust emotional support systems. These findings provide a practical framework for nursing professors, clinical instructors, and healthcare professionals to create optimized, safer clinical learning environments.
Sevim Akbal, H. Bozdemir, Meltem Yıldırım· BMC Nursing· 0 citations
This qualitative study explored first-year nursing students’ perceptions and challenges related to the use of role-play as a teaching strategy for enhancing therapeutic communication skills at the School of Nursing, Maldives National University. A phenomenological design was employed, and data were collected through two focus group discussions involving 13 first-year nursing students enrolled in the Bachelor of Nursing and Advanced Diploma in Nursing programmes. Data was analysed using Colaizzi’s phenomenological approach. Three themes emerged: experiences of role-play in enhancing communication skills, perceived improvements in therapeutic communication competencies, and challenges associated with role-play activities. Participants reported that role-play provided an engaging learning experience, increased confidence, and supported the application of theoretical knowledge to simulated clinical situations. Improvements in language competency and management of patient interactions were also noted, alongside the value of constructive educator feedback. Challenges included language barriers, anxiety, and self-consciousness during performance. Overall, role-play was perceived as an effective pedagogical strategy for developing therapeutic communication skills among first-year nursing students. Addressing identified challenges through supportive learning environments and structured assessment approaches may further enhance its effectiveness in nursing education.
Mariyam Hudha· The Maldives National Journa...· 0 citations
PROBLEM
Pediatric clinical practice is essential in nursing education, enabling students to apply theoretical knowledge in child- and family-centered care. However, pediatric settings involve distinct emotional, communicative, and organizational challenges that may influence students' learning and professional development.
OBJECTIVE
To systematically map and synthesize qualitative and phenomenological research examining nursing students' experiences in pediatric clinical practice settings.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Qualitative studies published in English between 2020 and 2025 that explored nursing students' experiences in pediatric clinical practice settings and were available in full text.
SAMPLE
Web of Science, PubMed, CINAHL, and Scopus databases were searched. Nine qualitative studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review.
RESULTS
Five main themes were identified: communication and relationship building; learning and professional development, collaboration with families and cultural sensitivity; psychological challenges and emotional burden; and institutional and organizational factors. Students commonly reported anxiety and low self-confidence during the early stages of pediatric clinical practice. While collaboration with families supported learning, emotional burden, and task-oriented clinical cultures were perceived as barriers.
CONCLUSION
Communication with the child emerged as a core component of pediatric clinical practice experiences. Exposure to emotionally challenging situations, such as severe illness or death, may negatively affect students' emotional well-being. Although pediatric clinical practice contributes to professional development, additional structured support is needed.
IMPLICATION
Educational strategies focusing on child- and family-centered communication, emotional support, and reflective learning are essential. Simulation-based training and mentorship may enhance nursing students' confidence and self-efficacy in pediatric clinical settings.
Merve Oral, Tutku Kırcı Temiz, H. Boztepe· Journal of pediatric nursing· 0 citations
: Clinical reasoning is a core competence in nursing education. It helps nursing students collect patient cues, interpret clinical information, make safe decisions, and reflect on nursing actions. In recent years, technology-enhanced learning has been widely used in nursing education, including simulation, virtual simulation, virtual patients, online learning, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence-supported learning. These methods may provide safe, repeatable, and interactive learning contexts for students to practise clinical reasoning before entering real clinical settings. This systematic review aims to summarize current evidence on clinical reasoning in technology-enhanced nursing education. The review focuses on three questions: what technologies have been used, how these technologies support clinical reasoning, and what problems still exist in current research. The reviewed literature shows that simulation-based learning and virtual simulation are the most common approaches. These methods can improve students’ clinical reasoning, knowledge retention, self-efficacy, confidence, and satisfaction. Structured debriefing and reflection are important mechanisms that link technology use with reasoning development. However, current studies still have limitations, such as small samples, short intervention periods, inconsistent outcome measures, and limited long-term follow-up. Future research should use stronger designs, clearer theoretical models, and more direct measures of clinical reasoning.
Nanxiang Zhang· Curriculum and Teaching Meth...· 0 citations