Effective online learning strategies for leadership and policy undergraduate courses for nursing students: a rapid review.

Abstract

Due to the importance of developing leadership competencies during nursing education, it is critical to make evidence-based decisions regarding the transformation from face-to-face to online delivery of leadership and policy courses for nursing students in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This rapid review aims to identify effective learning strategies for creating online leadership and policy courses for undergraduate nursing students. A rapid review methodology was used. Searches in CINAHL and ERIC yielded 4112 records. After screening, seven articles were included. The Criteria for Describing and Evaluating Training Interventions in Healthcare Professions (CRe-DEPTH) tool was used for quality appraisal and data extraction. A narrative synthesis approach was used to summarize the data. The learning activities were heterogeneous in terms of content and format. Articles described the use of discussion forums, case studies, virtual clinical learning experiences, microblogging, and video clips. The methods of evaluation for these learning activities also varied greatly. The findings will act as a steppingstone to help develop an online undergraduate leadership and policy nursing course. This review also demonstrated the need for rigorous evaluation of learning activities. The use of a tool such as the CRe-DEPTH can help instructors plan and report on their learning interventions or courses.