This randomized controlled study aims to evaluate the effect of a patient safety-focused digital microlearning program on nursing students before they begin surgical clinical practice. Nursing students often face challenges related to patient safety and clinical decision-making during the transition from classroom learning to clinical settings. This study will examine whether short, structured digital learning modules can improve patient safety awareness, recognition of clinical errors, and decision-making skills. Second-year undergraduate nursing students will be randomly assigned to either a digital microlearning intervention group or a control group receiving standard education. Outcomes will be measured before the intervention, immediately after the intervention, and during the first week of clinical practice.
The transition from preclinical education to clinical practice represents a critical period for patient safety among nursing students. During this phase, limited clinical experience combined with increased responsibility may increase the risk of errors related to patient safety and clinical decision-making. Educational strategies that strengthen patient safety awareness and cognitive readiness before clinical exposure are therefore essential. This study is designed as a single-center, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial. It will be conducted at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing, Agri Ibrahim Cecen University. Participants will consist of second-year undergraduate nursing students who are preparing to begin surgical clinical practice for the first time. After baseline assessment, eligible participants will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group using stratified randomization based on gender and grade point average. The intervention group will receive a patient safety-focused digital microlearning program delivered online for seven consecutive days. The program consists of short, scenario-based modules lasting approximately 3-5 minutes each and addresses topics such as patient safety risks, clinical error recognition, prioritization, and decision-making under stress. Participants will be able to access the modules flexibly within a daily time limit. The control group will receive standard patient safety education as part of the undergraduate nursing curriculum without additional intervention. Outcome measures will be collected at three time points: baseline prior to the intervention (T0), immediately after completion of the intervention (T1), and during the first week of surgical clinical practice (T2). Primary outcomes include changes in patient safety awareness and clinical error recognition performance. Secondary outcomes include clinical decision-making under stress, perceived readiness for clinical practice, self-confidence, and acceptability of the digital microlearning program. This study involves an educational intervention only and does not include any invasive procedures, drugs, or medical devices. Participation is voluntary, and written informed consent will be obtained from all participants. The study has been submitted for ethical review and will be conducted in accordance with ethical principles for research involving human participants.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
70
A structured digital microlearning program consisting of short, scenario-based modules (3-5 minutes each) focusing on patient safety awareness, clinical error recognition, prioritization, and clinical decision-making. The program will be delivered online for seven consecutive days before surgical clinical practice.
Agri Ibrahim Cecen University Faculty of Health Sciences
AĞRI, Merkez, Turkey (Türkiye)
Patient Safety Awareness
Change in patient safety awareness assessed using the Patient Safety Awareness Questionnaire, which evaluates students' understanding of patient safety principles, risk recognition, and safe clinical practices in surgical care. Outcome Measure: Total score on the Patient Safety Awareness Questionnaire, ranging from 0 to 100, where higher scores indicate greater patient safety awareness.
Time frame: Baseline (T0): Prior to the educational intervention (Day 0) Post-intervention (T1): Within 1 week after completion of the intervention Follow-up (T2): During the first week of surgical clinical practice
Clinical Error Recognition Performance
Change in clinical error recognition performance assessed using scenario-based clinical error recognition tests evaluating students' ability to identify patient safety risks and potential clinical errors. Outcome Measure: Total score on the Clinical Error Recognition Test, ranging from 0 to 100, where higher scores indicate better clinical error recognition performance.
Time frame: Baseline (T0): Prior to the educational intervention (Day 0) Post-intervention (T1): Within 1 week after completion of the intervention Follow-up (T2): During the first week of surgical clinical practice
Clinical Decision-Making Under Stress
Change in clinical decision-making performance under stress assessed using scenario-based decision-making evaluations simulating stressful surgical clinical situations. Outcome Measure: Total score on the Clinical Decision-Making Under Stress Assessment, ranging from 0 to 100, where higher scores indicate better clinical decision-making performance under stress.
Time frame: Baseline (T0): Prior to the educational intervention (Day 0) Post-intervention (T1): Within 1 week after completion of the intervention Follow-up (T2): During the first week of surgical clinical practice
Perceived Readiness and Self-Confidence for Clinical Practice
Change in perceived readiness and self-confidence for surgical clinical practice measured using the Clinical Practice Readiness and Self-Confidence Scale. Outcome Measure: Total score on the Clinical Practice Readiness and Self-Confidence Scale, ranging from 1 to 5, where higher scores indicate greater perceived readiness and self-confidence.
Time frame: Baseline (T0): Prior to the educational intervention (Day 0) Post-intervention (T1): Within 1 week after completion of the intervention Follow-up (T2): During the first week of surgical clinical practice
Acceptability of the Digital Microlearning Program
Participant satisfaction and perceived usefulness of the digital microlearning program assessed using a post-intervention program acceptability questionnaire in the intervention group. Outcome Measure: Total score on the Program Acceptability Questionnaire, ranging from 1 to 5, where higher scores indicate greater acceptability and perceived usefulness.
Time frame: Post-intervention (T1): Within 1 week after completion of the intervention
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