Search

Historically, McMaster University School of Nursing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada has utilized self-directed learning methods to teach psychomotor nursing skills to undergraduate nursing students. Second year students, in their postclinical evaluations indicated a desire for a structured laboratory setting to assist them in acquiring these skills. In response, faculty designed a randomized control trial to compare the effectiveness of teaching psychomotor skills in a structured laboratory setting with self-directed self-taught modules. The results of this study substantiated the hypothesis of no difference between psychomotor skill performance of students who learn in a self-directed manner and those taught in a structured clinical laboratory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fifty-nine baccalaureate nursing students were surveyed regarding their preferred method of learning psychomotor skills necessary for clinical practice. In addition, 12 faculty members were also asked to express their opinions of the best way for students to learn psychomotor skills. The use of a self-directed clinical laboratory was supported by both students and faculty in this study. Hands on and visual pre-clinical experiences with adequate equipment were the major factors influencing the students' requests for clinical laboratories. Faculty expressed the same concerns about equipment and human resources, but their support of the laboratory was tempered and based on the presence or absence of adequate human resources and equipment available to students in the clinical setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]