Enhancing placement capacity and increasing knowledge and confidence: a children's hospice e-learning placement.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Palliative Care Education
• Nursing Student Training
• Virtual Learning Environments

Background:

• Educating nursing students for pediatric palliative care is difficult due to misconceptions about children's hospice services.
• Limited clinical placement capacity for pediatric palliative care hinders student training opportunities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the development and effectiveness of a virtual pediatric hospice placement for nursing and learning disability nursing students.
• To assess the value of e-learning in pediatric palliative care education.

Main Methods:

• Forty nursing students participated in a one-week virtual pediatric hospice placement.
• The placement utilized the national evidence-based Peer Enhanced e-Placement (PEEP) model.
• Student learning was evaluated using pre- and post-placement surveys.

Main Results:

• The collaborative virtual placement significantly enhanced students' knowledge, skills, and confidence in pediatric palliative care.
• Findings indicate a positive impact of the e-placement on student preparedness.

Conclusions:

• Virtual e-placements can effectively expand placement capacity for nursing students in pediatric palliative care.
• This innovative educational model boosts student competence and confidence, addressing key training barriers.