Effects of a concurrent clinical education assignment on student concerns

Students participating in a concurrent pattern of clinical education spend part of the day or week in didactic instruction and the remaining portion in clinical education. The purpose of this descriptive study was to identify concerns expressed by students before and after an early concurrent assignment and before a nonconcurrent assignment. Twenty junior level baccalaureate degree students participated in open-ended taped interviews before and after a concurrent assignment that occurred during the first six months of their professional program. The most frequently expressed concerns were about interpersonal interactions, the students' knowledge, and treatment procedures. The students expressed more concerns before the concurrent assignment than after the concurrent assignment and before a nonconcurrent assignment. We conclude that the concurrent assignment builds students' confidence in their affective and psychomotor skills.