Abstract
Clinical education is an essential part of the nursing curriculum contributing to critical thinking skills and nursing judgment. The students’ experiences within the clinical setting sets a precedence for their future careers and how they interact with their peers and interprofessional team members (Mamaghani et al., 2019). Communication between the bedside nurses and the students is a key factor to student success and confidence at the bedside. The tone, topic, and timing of the conversation between students, nurses, and/or peers, may impact the student view of bedside nursing. Positive interactions and supportive feedback leads to improved patient care, clinical judgment, and student learning (Arkan et al., 2018). The quality of the care provided by students for patients also improves with each new experience. Nurses can foster a positive relationship with nursing students by inquiring about the student’s background and knowledge level as well as communicating effectively in the clinical setting (Rebeiro et al., 2021).
In recent years, the nursing profession has been challenged with a pandemic, staffing shortages, and other vulnerabilities. Many nurses throughout the world have been reported as considering leaving the nursing field and/or their current position within the next few years (Grinspun et al., 2022). Due to the ongoing stress of an unstable profession and higher than normal workloads, nurses are experiencing burnout and negative implications to their mental health and well-being. This negativity affects the daily work performance by nurses which is witnessed by student nurses in the clinical setting (Grinspun et al., 2022). A negative environment may also affect the learning experiences of student nurses and discourage students from joining the nursing profession (Webster et al., 2016). The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to explore nursing students’ opinions of the nature of the relationship they had with practicing nurses in the clinical setting during their undergraduate education. Furthermore, this study will determine any effect that relationship had on clinical learning experiences. .
This study was created to assess the experiences of nursing students during various clinical rotations. The survey was sent electronically to CCNE-accredited baccalaureate nursing programs across the country. One school from each state was randomly selected to receive a copy of the survey. An informative letter about the study and a letter of consent was sent to the Dean or Department Chair for each school selected. Six schools agreed to participate in the study and forwarded the study to 1,315 undergraduate nursing students in total. Ninety students agreed to participate and complete the survey.
The open-ended questions allowed participants the opportunity to discuss their experiences in the clinical setting and reflect on the interactions among themselves and nursing staff and to describe what variables within the community or social media impacted their view of the nursing profession, while the closed-ended questions gathered demographic data of participants. Thematic analysis was conducted, and findings include themes of desire to learn, realities of the nursing profession, and solidifying future trajectories. The findings have implications for practicing nurses, nursing administration, student nurses, and nurse educators.
Notes
Presenter notes available in attached slide deck.
Reference list included in attached slide deck.
Sigma Membership
Non-member
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Descriptive/Correlational
Research Approach
Mixed/Multi Method Research
Keywords:
Clinical Education, Nursing Education, Curriculum, Student Experiences
Recommended Citation
Smith, Carolyn E. and Davis, Jenna E., "Nursing Student Perceptions of Clinical Experiences with Practicing Nurses: A Descriptive Research Study" (2026). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 92.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2024/presentations_2024/92
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Year
2024
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-02-24
Nursing Student Perceptions of Clinical Experiences with Practicing Nurses: A Descriptive Research Study
Washington, DC, USA
Clinical education is an essential part of the nursing curriculum contributing to critical thinking skills and nursing judgment. The students’ experiences within the clinical setting sets a precedence for their future careers and how they interact with their peers and interprofessional team members (Mamaghani et al., 2019). Communication between the bedside nurses and the students is a key factor to student success and confidence at the bedside. The tone, topic, and timing of the conversation between students, nurses, and/or peers, may impact the student view of bedside nursing. Positive interactions and supportive feedback leads to improved patient care, clinical judgment, and student learning (Arkan et al., 2018). The quality of the care provided by students for patients also improves with each new experience. Nurses can foster a positive relationship with nursing students by inquiring about the student’s background and knowledge level as well as communicating effectively in the clinical setting (Rebeiro et al., 2021).
In recent years, the nursing profession has been challenged with a pandemic, staffing shortages, and other vulnerabilities. Many nurses throughout the world have been reported as considering leaving the nursing field and/or their current position within the next few years (Grinspun et al., 2022). Due to the ongoing stress of an unstable profession and higher than normal workloads, nurses are experiencing burnout and negative implications to their mental health and well-being. This negativity affects the daily work performance by nurses which is witnessed by student nurses in the clinical setting (Grinspun et al., 2022). A negative environment may also affect the learning experiences of student nurses and discourage students from joining the nursing profession (Webster et al., 2016). The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to explore nursing students’ opinions of the nature of the relationship they had with practicing nurses in the clinical setting during their undergraduate education. Furthermore, this study will determine any effect that relationship had on clinical learning experiences. .
This study was created to assess the experiences of nursing students during various clinical rotations. The survey was sent electronically to CCNE-accredited baccalaureate nursing programs across the country. One school from each state was randomly selected to receive a copy of the survey. An informative letter about the study and a letter of consent was sent to the Dean or Department Chair for each school selected. Six schools agreed to participate in the study and forwarded the study to 1,315 undergraduate nursing students in total. Ninety students agreed to participate and complete the survey.
The open-ended questions allowed participants the opportunity to discuss their experiences in the clinical setting and reflect on the interactions among themselves and nursing staff and to describe what variables within the community or social media impacted their view of the nursing profession, while the closed-ended questions gathered demographic data of participants. Thematic analysis was conducted, and findings include themes of desire to learn, realities of the nursing profession, and solidifying future trajectories. The findings have implications for practicing nurses, nursing administration, student nurses, and nurse educators.
Description
A study on nurse to nursing student relationships has many implications for practicing nurses. Attendees will gain insight into nursing students’ perceptions during clinical and how it impacts their views on the nursing profession. Presenters will provide pragmatic implications for practicing nurses.