Neurocritical Care Video Training in Palestine: RCT on Nursing Students' EVD Knowledge, Attitude, Skills, Confidence

Overview

This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effect of a video-based educational program on nursing students' knowledge, attitude, self-reported practice, and confidence related to external ventricular drainage (EVD) care. The study will be conducted among third- and fourth-year undergraduate nursing students enrolled in the critical care course at Modern University College, West Bank, Palestine. Participants will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either a structured 57-minute video-based educational session or an equivalent flashcard-based session covering the same content. All participants will complete pre- and post-intervention assessments to measure changes in EVD-related knowledge, attitude, self-reported practice, and confidence.

This single-center, single-blind randomized controlled trial is designed to compare two educational methods-video-based instruction and flashcard-based theoretical learning-among undergraduate nursing students. The purpose of the study is to examine whether a structured video-based educational session influences students' knowledge, attitude, self-reported practice, and confidence in relation to external ventricular drainage (EVD) care. Participants will be recruited from third- and fourth-year nursing students enrolled in the critical care course who have not yet completed the neurological nursing module. Eligible students must be actively enrolled in the course, willing to participate, and able to complete all study procedures. Students with prior formal EVD training or clinical exposure to EVD care will be excluded. A simple randomization procedure will assign participants to either the video-based education group or the flashcard-based education group. Allocation concealment will be maintained using sealed, opaque envelopes prepared by an independent researcher. Participants will be blinded to the specific intervention under investigation, and outcome assessors will be unaware of group assignments. Interventions Video-Based Education Group: Participants will view a 57-minute instructional video covering essential concepts related to EVD, including indications, monitoring principles, equipment, procedures, and safety considerations. The session will be delivered in a classroom setting, and the content will align with standard neurocritical care educational materials. Flashcard-Based Education Group: Participants assigned to the control group will review a set of illustrated flashcards containing the same educational content presented in the video. The flashcard session will match the duration of the video-based session and will provide a structured, text-based theoretical review. To minimize contamination, both sessions will be delivered separately on the same day in different classrooms. Access to materials will be restricted until data collection is completed. Data Collection Pre-intervention assessments will be administered immediately before the educational sessions, and post-intervention assessments will be collected immediately afterward. The assessment tool includes demographic questions and structured items measuring EVD-related knowledge, attitude, self-reported practice, and subjective confidence. All data will be collected electronically using secure online forms. Responses will be coded to maintain confidentiality, and group labels will not be visible to the assessors evaluating completed questionnaires. Data Analysis Data will be analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics as planned in the study protocol. Analyses will include comparisons of pre- and post-intervention scores within and between groups, as well as appropriate statistical modeling to adjust for baseline differences. A significance threshold of 0.05 will be used. Ethical Considerations Ethical approval was obtained from the institutional research ethics committee. Participation is voluntary, and informed consent will be obtained electronically. Confidentiality will be maintained by assigning coded identifiers, and data will be stored securely. Both groups will receive access to all educational materials after data collection is completed.