Enhancing nursing students’ preoperative care competence and problem-solving skills through video-assisted case-based learning

Abstract

Background: Competent nursing care provided the preoperative period is crucial for ensuring patient safety, improving surgical outcomes, and preventing potential complications. Traditional teaching methods in nursing programs may be insufficient for developing this competence. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of video-assisted CBL on nursing students’ perceived preoperative care competence and problem-solving skills. Methods: A quasi-experimental, two-group, pretest–posttest design was used in this study. Seventy-seven nursing students were assigned either to the CBL group (n = 38) or to the lecture-based learning (LBL) group (n = 39). Outcomes pertaining to perceived preoperative nursing care competence and problem-solving ability were assessed in both groups using the Perceived Preoperative Nursing Care Competence Scale for Nursing Students (PPreCCNS) and the Problem Solving Inventory (PSI). Results: In the CBL group, the post-intervention total and subscale scores of the PPreCCNS showed significant improvements compared with baseline. The CBL group demonstrated higher mean scores than the LBL group on all PPreCCNS sub-dimensions except for the communication. Regarding the PSI, no significant change in the total score was observed in the CBL group when compared with either the pre-intervention assessment or the LBL group; however, significant difference emerged only in the approach–avoidance style subscale. Conclusions: To enhance students’ perceived competence in preoperative nursing care, active learning approaches such as CBL may be integrated into undergraduate nursing curricula. Further studies are needed to examine the effectiveness of longer-term CBL using diverse scenarios, as well as other active learning strategies, to better support the development of problem-solving skills.