Factors influencing supervision during clinical placement among nursing students of International Health Sciences University.

Abstract

One of the most valuable components of a nursing program is acquisition of clinical skills through the clinical learning environment (CLE). This setting provides students with unique learning opportunities in which classroom theory and skills are put to the test with real life situations. Clinical learning environments include hospitals, doctors’ offices, health departments, hospice units and other health care settings utilized for student learning. The CLE differs from the classroom or lab setting in many ways. The general objectives of the study are to determine the factors influencing supervision during clinical placement among nursing students of International Health Sciences University and to assess the clinic area institutional factors, to identify clinical supervisors. Majority (52.6%) of the supervisor agreed that they identify the needs of students and ensure that their learning needs are met. Majority (42.1%) of the supervisor disagree that they do self-evaluation at every end of the clinical placement in order to determine the students and university satisfaction their supervision. But 31.6% strongly disagreed. Majority (42.1%) of the supervisor agreed that they do critical supervision of students to ensure their safety, the safety of patients and hospital property. While 31.6 % disagree about the same issue. Majority (42.1%) of the supervisor agreed that they are allocated manageable number of students to be supervised. But 26.3% disagreed being allocated a manageable number of students. 42.1% of the supervisor agreed that they work hand in hand with the students to carry out the different procedures. 63.2% of the supervisor agreed that they allocate students with a variety of clinical assignments to ensure their clinical learning objectives are achieved. At the same time 26.3 disagreed about the same issue. Conclusions The university communicates to the hospital earlier and prepares the students prior to the hospital placement but the hospital supervisors are not informed early about the coming of the students. In fact they see the students when they are being oriented to hospital for the first time but will have not known about it earlier. When the students reach the hospital they are oriented around the hospital but when they reach the ward the supervisor just tell them to start working without orienting them to the ward, the expectations and the norms of the ward. The supervisors acknowledge that there is appropriate number of students on each ward for the supervisors to teach without overcrowding the wards but the work load hinders their teaching of the students. Both the students and supervisor acknowledged that there is irregular attendance of the students in the clinical area. Even when students come to the ward early enough but they usually leave before time. Some supervisors are not and motivated by to supervise the students. The supervisors are not trained on how to supervise the students in the clinical area during placement. The supervisors acknowledge that they identify the needs of students and ensure that their learning needs are met but the students deny their objectives being met while in the clinical placement. Evaluation at the end of every clinical practice in not done so it is difficult to measure whether the objectives are met. Much as some supervisor ensure safe while in the clinical placement. It is not guaranteed because some supervisor assume safely is every ones responsibility. There is need for the University to communicate to the hospital and also ensure that all the in charges supposed to supervise these students are aware and they prepare to receive and teach students. Each ward requires orienting students to students to the ward itself other than that which is done for the whole Hospital. There is need to have the students lecturers from the University in the wards almost all the time during placement such that they can teach students when the ward supervisors are over whelmed with the work load. This will also check the students’ wholes are always attending irregularly. There is need for the University and hospital to motivate supervisor on the wards. The supervisors need to be trained on how to supervise the students in the clinical area during placement. There is also need to make clear objective which the students must meet and they should be known and clear to everyone the supervisor, the lectures and students. There is need for formal appraisal of the activities done by students on the ward, to evaluate students’ Achievement of their objective