Effectiveness of the clinical teaching associate model in clinical nursing education

Background:Nurses need to have high levels of clinical competence for the provision of quality care to patients. The use of modern teaching methods can help nursing students develop their clinical competence. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the Clinical Teaching Associate (CTA) model on clinical skills and satisfaction with clinical education among nursing students. Methods: This two-group posttest-only trial was conducted on 120 nursing students recruited through the census method from Tabriz Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz, Iran. They had just taken the oncology nursing clinical education course. Participants were randomly allocated to a control group to receive clinical education through routine teaching method and an intervention group to receive clinical education through the CTA model. At the end of the course, participants' clinical skills and satisfaction were assessed using a checklist and a questionnaire, respectively. The study data were analyzed using the measures of descriptive statistics and independent-samples t-tests. Results:The mean score of overall clinical skills in the intervention group was significantly greater than that of the control group (75.54 ± 4.24 vs. 65.46 ± 5.32; P = 0.003). Moreover, the mean score of overall satisfaction with clinical education in the intervention group was significantly greater than that of the control group (98.16 ± 1.23 vs. 84.41 ± 1.52; P < 0.001). Conclusion:This study shows the positive effects of the CTA model on nursing students' clinical skills and satisfaction. Therefore, it can be used to improve learning outcomes among nursing students