Abstract
Background: Clinical placement is a very critical and important component of the 4-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing programme, and it provides the chance for nursing students to acquire, apply and integrate knowledge and nursing skills into the real life situation. Cultivating practical competencies is central to clinical placement and is the key to nursing education curriculum. The characteristics of Generation Z especially in learning style are described through literature review. In addition, the health care system and the needs of Macao society for a competent nursing workforce is introduced briefly.
Objective: The aim of this paper is to explore strategies how to enhance clinical competencies for the baccalaureate nursing students belonging to Generation Z.
Methodology: The description of practical competencies were developed for each academic year based on level descriptors, which are congruent with the graduate attributes of the institution and learning outcomes of the Nursing Programme. A survey using self-report open-ended questionnaires was conducted in Feb 2021 and Jan 2022 among Year 4 students in the Nursing Programme. Questions related to the study plan including study methods, teaching content, and clinical placement arrangements were asked.
Results: The response rates were 86.00% (43/50) and 73.68% (28/38), respectively. Students were mainly concerned with teaching in the clinical settings. Three themes of clinical competencies were extracted: 1. clinical learning environment needs to be advanced; 2. students’ psychological well-being should be valued; 3. diversified teaching methods should be utilized.
Conclusions/Recommendations: Cutting edge clinical learning environment is vital to nursing education, and emotional support should be valued and new teaching methods should be utilized in order to enhance practical competencies for the Generation Z students.
Biography
Dr. Glenn LUO is currently an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Health Sciences and Sports, Macao Polytechnic University. He has been teaching in higher education in nursing almost 30 years and was the Nursing Programme Coordinator among February 2010 and August 2018. More than 30 international and domestic academic papers have been published. His research interests are mainly in higher education especially in nursing, health care of children, and evidence-based nursing practice.