Purpose:
A significant lack of research exists on the practical nurse (PN) and PN education. Most of what is known about nursing education has been derived from the experiences of programs preparing students to become Registered Nurses (RN). The pathways by which students enter PN programs has expanded in recent years, yet the academic outcomes of these students have not been studied. Pre-entry pathways are defined as "routes that students take to move between and among levels of education credentials, institutions, types of institutions and programs" (Government of Ontario, 2011). These pre-entry pathways often involve formal articulation agreements and may be traditional or non-traditional routes of entry.
This observational, retrospective, cross-sectional study examined pre-entry pathways into the PN program at one community college in Ontario. This program accepted students through the traditional entry route and three non-traditional entry pathways. The non-traditional pathways focused on increasing access and preparing students who would otherwise be ineligible to enter the program through the traditional route. Three non-traditional pre-entry pathways identified for study included 1) a personal support worker pathway to practical nursing certificate program, 2) pre-health sciences certificate program, and 3) a partnership with adult education centres in the community.
The overall research question that guided this study was “Does the pre-entry pathway affect academic outcomes for students enrolled in the PN program at one community college in Ontario?” The hypothesis for this study was that academic outcomes for students would differ between the traditional and non-traditional entry pathways.
Methods:
Data was gathered from existing records held by the Office of the Registrar for 338 students admitted to the PN program during the 2013-2014 academic year at one Ontario community college. The pre-entry pathways served as the independent variable and the traditional pathway was the control group. Dependent variables included the following academic outcomes: grade point average (GPA), number of course failures, number of semesters enrolled, and program completion status. Additional variables such as demographics, pre-admission score, and Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) completion were collected. Data collection occurred in 2017 in order to ensure adequate time had elapsed to examine program completion. Data analysis using SPSS software was conducted using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), chi-square, and Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA testing. A regression analysis was used to explore relationships between variables
Results:
No difference between pathways was found on completion status and number of failures, thus indicating that academic outcomes did not differ between pathways. Factors influencing program completion were identified and included the number of semesters enrolled and number of course failures.
Limitations:
The retrospective design of this study and reliance on an existing database for data collection was a limiting factor. Additional characteristics and information that may have been desirable for inclusion (i.e. family status) were not available. It is possible that other factors, such as a difference between pathway sites, may have influenced the results. The single site of this study further limits the generalizability of the results.
Recommendations:
Further study of pre-entry programs and PN education is needed. Study of the perception of students on how well the pre-entry pathways prepared them for the PN program would also be valuable. Additional recommendations for the study host site included revision of admission criteria, examination of student success supports strengthening partnerships between pre-entry programs and developing common curricula for pre-entry programs.
Conclusion:
No significant differences or associations for academic outcomes were found between the traditional and non-traditional pathways for PN students. Program completion was significantly associated with the number of semesters enrolled and number of course failures. The lack of differences in academic outcomes suggests that pre-entry pathways can be considered as a novel approach to promoting greater access to nursing education, however, further study of pre-entry pathways and practical nursing education is needed.