Current Issue : January-March Volume : 2026 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
Background: The European Doctoral Conference in Nursing Science provides a unique platform for doctoral students in nursing and health sciences to present their research in a supportive environment. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the 2024 conference embraced the motto “looking back and looking forward,” offering an opportunity to reflect on the development of nursing science and future challenges. Results: Held at the Medical University of Graz, Austria, the conference hosted 90 participants from 13 countries. It featured two keynote lectures, three workshops, 48 presentations, and a science slam. Abstract submissions underwent peer review to ensure the quality of presentations. The presentations highlighted key challenges and opportunities across nursing practice, healthcare work environments, education and digitalization in nursing, and health perspectives. Topics included, for example, workforce retention, artificial intelligence in nursing practice, leadership in error management, and culturally sensitive care. The keynotes emphasized the importance of patient and public involvement in research and the benefits of survey data in nursing science. Workshops imparted knowledge and skills regarding funding acquisition, guideline development, and effective research presentation. A science slam introduced innovative and creative ways to present research. Conclusions: The conference showcased the evolving landscape of nursing science, emphasizing the importance of evidence-based practice, supportive working conditions, and constructive collaboration. It demonstrated the enthusiasm and readiness of a new generation of researchers to advance nursing science in a rapidly changing healthcare environment....
Background and Purpose: Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience great stress and conflict when choosing their child’s pathway to elementary school. This study, through a literature review, aimed to clarify the demands of parents when selecting an elementary school for their children with ASD. Methods: A literature search was conducted in the Japanese literature databases J-STAGE, Ichushi-Web, and CiNii Research using the keywords “autism AND school attendance”; 2274 articles were found, from which 17 articles were analyzed. A directed content analysis was conducted based on Hohashi’s Support Vectors of Family/Family Environment Intervention Model. Demands of parents when selecting a primary school for their children were extracted from the descriptions in the literature and then sub-categorized and categorized. The categories were grouped into one of three systems: family internal environment system, family external environment system, and family chrono environment system. Results: A total of 67 subcategories and 13 categories were extracted. The family internal environment system was comprised of three categories, such as “I want to agree with my spouse”; the family external environment system was comprised of five categories, such as “I want information to be provided”; and the family chrono environment system was comprised of five categories, such as “I have hopes for my child”. Conclusions: It is important for medical professionals to individually evaluate the demands of parents and support them in choosing an appropriate primary school in accordance with those demands....
Background: Gamification may enhance engagement and higher-order learning in health-care profession education, but evidence from undergraduate nursing programs—particularly in the Middle East—is limited. We evaluated whether integrating structured gamified activities into an anatomy and physiology course improves class engagement and knowledge-based critical thinking. Methods: In this pragmatic, nonrandomized, section-allocated quasiexperimental study at a single Saudi institution, 121 first-year female nursing students were assigned by existing cohorts to traditional instruction (control; n = 61) or instruction enhanced with gamified elements (intervention; n = 60) groups. The intervention (introduced mid-semester) comprised time-limited competitive quizzing with immediate feedback and aligned puzzle tasks. Outcomes were measured at baseline, mid-semester, and end-semester using a four-item Class Engagement Rubric (CER; scale 1–5) and a 40-item high-cognitive multiple-choice (MCQ) assessment mapped to course objectives. Analyses used paired and independent t-tests with effect sizes and 95% confidence intervals. Results: No attrition occurred. From baseline to end-semester, the intervention group had a mean CER increase of 0.59 points (95% CI, 0.42 to 0.76; p < 0.001)—approximately a 15% relative gain—and a mean MCQ increase of 0.30 points (95% CI, 0.18 to 0.42; p < 0.001), an ~8% relative gain. The control group showed no material change over the same interval. Between-group differences in change favored the intervention across CER items and for the MCQ outcome. Semester grade-point average did not differ significantly between groups (p = 0.055). Conclusions: Embedding a brief, structured gamification package within an undergraduate nursing anatomy and physiology course was associated with measurable improvements in classroom engagement and modest gains in knowledge-based critical thinking, with no detectable effect on overall semester GPA. Given the nonrandomized, single-site design, causal inference is limited. Multi-site randomized trials using validated critical-thinking instruments are warranted to confirm effectiveness and define dose, durability, and generalizability....
Background/Objectives: During the past decade, incorporating innovative teaching strategies for active learning, such as the use of escape rooms (ERs), has effectively contributed to the acquisition of the necessary skills. This study aimed to assess students’ opinions, engagement, and gameful experience, and to analyse the impact of engagement and gameful experience on students’ opinions about ER activity. Methods: This descriptive-analytical, quantitative, and interventional cross-sectional study was conducted among first-year nursing students enrolled in the Nursing Fundamentals course. The ER activities took place in a faculty classroom. The measure included a questionnaire for assessing students’ opinions about ER activity, engagement while learning through play, and the Gameful Experience Scale. Results: The students reported very positive opinions on the outcomes of escape room activities. According to the students’ perception, solving puzzles required a high level of cognitive, emotional, physical, and other engagement. The experience of learning through play contributed to their increased enjoyment, absorption, and creative thinking, with a low level of negative effects and dominance. Enjoyment, immersion, and creative thinking during the gameful experience explained 49.0% of the variance in students’ opinions on ER activity. Conclusions: ER enabled students to consolidate knowledge from various fields within one lesson, encouraging them to be highly engaged and think creatively, giving them a sense of enjoyment in learning and motivation for further learning....
Background/Objectives: Institutional Special Needs Plans (I-SNPs) are designed to enhance the quality of care for long-term nursing facility (NF) residents. However, utilization patterns vary significantly, and their broader impact remains only partially understood. This rapid review aims to identify, map, and synthesize the existing literature on the use of I-SNPs in nursing homes. Methods: Following Arksey and O’Malley’s framework and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, we conducted a comprehensive search of academic and gray literature using a predefined Boolean string. The extracted data were organized and analyzed thematically. Results: The synthesized literature (n = 12 studies) revealed four primary themes: (1) Market Penetration and Enrollment; (2) Models of Care Application; (3) Impact on Clinical and Financial Outcomes; and (4) Barriers to Utilization. Conclusions: I-SNP utilization represents a shift from fragmented FFS payment models toward integrated managed care within nursing facilities. Evidence shows a reduction in acute care transfers, although findings for other outcomes are mixed, underscoring the need for further research and policy development....
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