Background The rapid growth of artificial intelligence in healthcare is transforming how nurses deliver care and make clinical decisions. From supporting diagnostics to providing virtual health assistants, artificial intelligence offers new ways to enhance patient outcomes and streamline healthcare processes. However, these advancements also bring challenges, particularly around ethics, potential biases, and ensuring technology complements rather than replaces human expertise. Methods A discussion paper designed to break down key artificial intelligence terms and demonstrate real-world applications to guide nurses to develop the skills needed to navigate this evolving technological landscape. Findings This discussion emphasises the importance of maintaining the critical role of human clinical judgment, highlighting that artificial intelligence should support nurses’ expertise rather than diminish it. The need for continuous education to keep nurses equipped with the knowledge to effectively integrate artificial intelligence into their practice is argued. With an inclusive approach, artificial intelligence has the potential to become a powerful tool that supports nurses in improving patient care while preserving the essential human touch in healthcare.

Background: In an undergraduate Bachelor of Nursing course, students enrol in an evidence-based Practice (EBP) subject. Three scaffolded tasks assess students’ ability to find, summarise and synthesise professional literature. For each assessment task, students are provided feedback that informs subsequent assessments. It is unclear how students use the feedback, and what elements of feedback are perceived as being most useful. Aim: This study aimed to examine nursing students’ perspectives of receiving feedback from scaffolded assessments and how feedback received influenced the development of the final assessment task. Design: A mixed-methods approach was used with a cross-sectional survey and online qualitative interviews. Setting: This research was conducted at Deakin University, School of Nursing and Midwifery in Melbourne, Australia. Participants: One hundred forty-eight students (17.4%, n = 851) participated in the cross-sectional survey. Seven students participated in the online qualitative interviews. Methods: Students enrolled in the EBP subject in Trimester, 2023 were invited to participate in a survey where they rated their experience of assessment feedback using a Likert scale. Students were also invited to participate in an online qualitative interview that further explored their perceptions. Results: Assessment exemplars were highly beneficial to understanding the assessment task (87.8% agree/strongly agree, n = 107). Responding to feedback was challenging (38.5%, n = 47). Qualitative themes identified were engagement with assessments, appropriateness of feedback, and use of scaffolded feedback. Conclusions: This study highlights that scaffolded feedback is valuable for student learning. Feedback in each rubric criterion helps with the alignment of learning outcomes. Resources that support students in how to respond to feedback are important.

Background: Indigenous Australians are disproportionately affected by diabetes, with a diagnosis rate nearly four times higher than people from a non-Indigenous background. This health disparity highlights the urgent need for healthcare providers to develop cultural empathy – a critical competency for delivering culturally safe and person-centered care. Cultural empathy is essential for building trust and effective communication in diabetes education and management within Indigenous people. However, there is a significant gap in targeted interventions to enhance this skill among healthcare providers. Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a digital storytelling intervention for enhancing cultural empathy levels of postgraduate diabetes education students. Design: This study has a pre-post survey design to measure changes in participants’ cultural empathy levels after exposure to a digital story. Methods: Students enrolled in a postgraduate diabetes education course at an Australian university were eligible to participate. The intervention included a first-person digital story about an Indigenous man with type 2 diabetes, accompanied by group-based discussions and self-reflection. The Comprehensive State Empathy Scale was utilised to assess empathy levels. Results: A total of 98 students completed both pre- and post-intervention surveys. There was a statistically significant increase in mean Comprehensive State Empathy Scale scores post-intervention (p < 0.001), indicating higher empathy levels. Improvements were observed across all six Comprehensive State Empathy Scale subscales, suggesting a multidimensional impact of the intervention. Conclusions: The digital story intervention significantly enhanced the cultural empathy levels of postgraduate diabetes education students. This study contributes to the evidence base for narrative-based pedagogies in cultivating empathy among healthcare providers. The findings highlight the potential of digital storytelling as a tool for improving cultural competency in healthcare education and practice, ultimately contributing to more empathic care for Indigenous people with diabetes.

Background: The number of patients with neurological disorders and severe disability is increasing globally. These patients often need help with positioning and the amount of support varies with their level of impairment. High rates of work-related musculoskeletal disorders are observed among healthcare professionals (HCP) with patient contact due to injuries during manual handling. There is insufficient research on manual handling by nurses and other HCP. Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to explore manual handling strategies by HCP in neurological inpatient and outpatient settings. A secondary aim was to explore pain during and post manual handling activities. Design: A convergent parallel mixed methods design. Methods: A quantitative survey was combined with qualitative semi-structured telephone interviews of HCP. The inclusion criteria were licensed allied HCP with at least seven years of experience with neurological patients in inpatient and/or outpatient settings and expertise in manual handling. Exclusion criteria included insufficient proficiency in German and pre-existing illness prior to start of professional education. The survey data were analysed using descriptive statistics and interviews were evaluated through inductive-reflexive thematic analysis. Results: Ten nurses, 10 occupational, 12 physiotherapists participated. Survey findings showed moderate time pressure, body strain, and low back and neck pain during patient transfers. HCPs spent an average of 7.3 (± 5.5) hours per week on personal endurance and strength training. They considered transfer aids moderately important and accessible, predominantly using the transfer board. Interdisciplinary collaboration in patient transfers was reported as crucial and usually available. We identified three themes from interviews: (1) individualised manual handling; (2) facilitating active patient participation during transfers; (3) maintaining personal physical fitness. Conclusions: Neurological symptoms, patient fears, and goal setting necessitated personalised transfer strategies. Patient characteristics, lack of space and time complicated transfers, prompting HCPs to use perception-oriented techniques, leverage, gravity, and momentum.

Background Falls are the most reported patient safety incident for patients >65 years in acute hospital settings worldwide. While multifactorial fall interventions reduce the number of falls in subacute and rehabilitation settings, fall interventions in acute hospital settings are unknown. Aim To evaluate the effectiveness of multifactorial fall interventions on the number of falls using codesigned education targeting staff and the patient and review the environment in acute hospital settings in NSW, Australia for patients over 65 years of age. Method A pre–post-test design with a non-equivalent group was conducted. All acute hospital inpatient falls occurring both pre- and post-intervention within one health district were included in this study. The use of Quality Improvement methodology identified gaps in risk screening and assessment, education and information, communication of risk, and standardised fall prevention equipment. Codesigned interventions to address these gaps were undertaken. Results The number of falls (p = 0.038) and injurious falls (p < 0.001) significantly decreased in the post-intervention group. There was a significant improvement in fall assessments (p < 0.001), delirium risk screening (p < 0.001), the provision of fall information (p < 0.001) and fall risk discussed at shift handover (p < 0.001) in the post-intervention group. Following the intervention, staff were significantly more likely to undertake fall education modules (p < 0.001) and develop a fall management plan (p < 0.001). Conclusion Falls continue to have a significant economic impact on the acute hospital setting. Our findings highlight multifactorial fall interventions that included staff and patients in the development phases reduced the number of falls. Multifactorial fall interventions targeting staff, patients and the environment may influence a reduction in the number of falls and the severity of falls in the acute hospital setting. Impact statement Multifactorial fall interventions reduce injurious falls, minor injuries, and falls resulting in serious injury and death.