The Effectiveness of Online Case Studies Among Medical-Surgical Nursing Students

Sunday, 30 July 2017

Shu-Yi Wang, PhD
Ruechert-Hartman Colleague for Health Professions, Regis University, Denver, CO, USA
Theresa G. Buxton, PhD
Loretto Heights School of Nursing, Regis University, Denver, CO, USA

Vendor provided online case studies were integrated throughout a medical-surgical nursing course. Case studies are a form of active learning that support student’s development of problem solving, critical reasoning, and analytical skills, which are valuable tools needed by professional nurses. Providing simulated hands-on experience in the form of realistic patient problems allows students to identify and apply principles to new or changing situations.The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of case studies integrated throughout medical-surgical nursing course and to evaluate the learning experiences among medical-surgical nursing students. A cross-sectional design was to assess 110 BSN students. 12 online case studies provided by a nursing education vendor were used in medical-surgical courses. Measurements were used to assess student perceptions of case studies regarding overall satisfaction with this type of learning activity and their effectiveness to enhance learning. Measurements included a 10-item of overall rate of case study, 11-item of satisfying found the each session of case study, 1-item of rate of the case study overall, and 1-item of descriptive question. The first category contained 10-items reviewing the overall experience of case study using a rating of 1= strongly disagree to 5= strongly agree numerical scale (strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, & strongly agree), the 2nd category contained 11-items rating the satisfaction for each of the 11 online case studies ranging from 1=Very Poor- 5=Excellent (very poor, poor, average, good, & excellent ), and the 3rd category had a 1-item rating from 1=Very Poor- 5=Excellent – of the overall satisfaction using case study. General comments and suggestions were also collected at end of survey to obtain additional information. Descriptive statistics were applied. The results showed there have a greater overall satisfaction using case studies among BSN students, as well as the overall rating for using case studies ranged between very good and excellent for BSN students. The online case studies emphasize practical thinking and assist students in identifying situations. Educators may choose this instructional strategy for accomplishing particular educational objectives. The results of this study can be applied as a reference for effective instructional, to extend independent online learning activities, or used as a flipped classroom teaching-learning strategy for a face-to-face classroom.