Progressive Dosing of Observed Real-Life Clinical Exposure for Nurse Practitioner Training

In most advanced practice programs, preceptors are relied on for providing student clinical experiences. Preceptor feedback often indicates that many students show competency deficits in well child care, case presentation, and clinical skills.

An innovative preclinical experience was developed using nonscripted pediatric patient and family volunteers from the local community. During the three 4-hour experiences, students obtained a health history, performed a full physical examination, and presented their findings using a standardized case presentation format. Student anxiety and levels of confidence were assessed before and after each experience.

Student anxiety decreased, and self-confidence and clinical skill competencies improved. Students who participated in the experiences with faculty demonstrated improved entry-level competencies, compared with previous cohorts who had not received the intervention.

Preclinical experiences using pediatric patients improved advanced practice nursing student confidence and competencies and reduced anxiety, improving overall entry-level clinical performance. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(9):552-555.].