Integration of primary care education into undergraduate nursing programs: a scoping review protocol

The objective of this scoping review is to examine and map literature related to primary care education in undergraduate nursing programs and to describe the attributes and extent of primary care education.

Primary care is a model of first-contact, continuous, comprehensive, and coordinated health care. Registered nurses are integral in successful collaborative team models of primary care. However, it is unclear how undergraduate nursing programs offer opportunities to learn about nursing practice within primary care settings. A better understanding of the attributes and extent of primary care education in undergraduate nursing programs will direct research, inform teaching-learning, and develop a stronger primary care nursing workforce.

This review will consider articles that include faculty/administrators, preceptors, or students of nursing programs that qualify graduates for entry-level registered nursing practice. Articles that report on undergraduate teaching-learning related to primary care will also be considered. Practical nursing, advanced practice, and post-licensure programs will be excluded. Teaching-learning related to settings other than primary care will also be excluded.

The Framework of Effective Teaching-Learning in Clinical Education will be the organizing framework for this scoping review. A 3-step search strategy will be followed to identify published and unpublished literature. Articles published in English or French will be included. Data extracted from eligible articles will include details on the study design/method, participants, context, type of teaching-learning activity, attributes associated with dimensions of the teaching-learning environment, and relevant outcomes. The results will be reported in tabular and/or diagrammatic format, accompanied by a narrative summary.

Open Science Framework: https://osf.io/cw5r3.