Types of perception toward non-face-to-face clinical practice among nursing students

간호대학생의 비대면 임상실습에 대한 인식 유형

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the types of perception toward non-face-to-face clinical practice and to characterize the types of students who experienced online clinical practice during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Methods: Q-methodology was used in this study, and 270 Q populations were formed based on in-depth interviews with 10 nursing students who had experienced non-face-to-face clinical practice, as well as related literature. Interviews were performed from August 1 to 31, 2022. A total of 42 Q samples were extracted, and Q sorting was performed on 33 nursing students who had experienced non-face-to-face clinical practice. A Q factor analysis was performed using the PC-QUANL program. Results: The nursing students' perceptions of non-face-to-face clinical practice were classified into the following five types: "future professional competency-focused type," "realistic convenience priority type," "task burden awareness type," "negative critic type," and "limited experience dissatisfaction type." Conclusion: This study revealed non-face-to-face clinical practice's positive and negative aspects in nursing education. Moreover, it identified the aspects of clinical practice that cannot be replaced by non-face-to-face clinical practice and the elements of non-face-to-face practice that can complement clinical practice. These findings can be used as fundamental data to establish a stable and efficient system for improving the quality of clinical practice in the post-COVID-19 era and to implement effective non-face-to-face clinical practice according to student types.