An Evaluation of an Extended Intervention to Reduce Plagiarism in Bachelor of Nursing Students.

Pre- and postintervention surveys of first-year nursing students were undertaken to establish the students' knowledge of plagiarism following implementation of an online library-based Academic Integrity Module and the use of plagiarism detection software. Knowledge and understanding of plagiarism improved, but students' ability to paraphrase remained poor. Students entering postsecondary educational institutions require ongoing support and learning opportunities to improve their skills in paraphrasing and referencing to avoid plagiarism.

An intervention aimed at reducing plagiarism in undergraduate nursing students.

Plagiarism is a current and developing problem in the tertiary education sector where students access information and reproduce it as their own. It is identified as occurring in many tertiary level degrees including nursing and allied health profession degrees. Nursing specifically, is a profession where standards and ethics are required and honesty is paramount. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in nursing student's knowledge and understanding of plagiarism before and after an educational intervention in their first semester of the Bachelor of nursing degree at a private college of higher education in Sydney, Australia. This study concluded that an educational intervention can increase knowledge and awareness of plagiarism among nursing students.

Enhancing the knowledge, attitudes, and skills of preceptors: an Australian perspective.

Within the context of nursing education in Australia, the registered nurse (RN) preceptor plays an invaluable role with nursing students; however, many are not specifically trained for this role. This study explored the perceptions of practicing preceptors from one health care facility after completion of a specially designed preceptor program. Results indicated that the participants perceived that the program had increased their knowledge of teaching and learning and increased their skills as preceptors. Further results suggested that when the RN preceptor's knowledge of the teaching and learning process increased, it led to an increase in the RN preceptor's generic preceptor skills. This increased the RN preceptor's confidence, leading to a more positive attitude toward student nurses and a positive effect on preceptor functioning, enhancing the preceptor's ability to include students more in daily nursing tasks.

A partnership approach to the preparation of preceptors.

The role of nurse preceptor is critical to the successful integration of nursing students into the profession. Collaborative, partnership-based learning between beginning and more experienced nurses is central to this role. This article describes a targeted course for registered nurses designed to increase their knowledge and skills for preceptoring and achieve attitudinal changes to enhance the student/RN learning relationship in the clinical workplace. The course development and participation experience is discussed in relation to action learning as a model for nurse professional development. Prospects for extended and more formalized application of action learning in nursing and nurse education are discussed.

Becoming and being a preceptor: a phenomenological study.

Preceptorship is a valuable component of nursing courses today and is seen as vital to the professional preparation of student nurses. Preceptors facilitate the development of knowledge, clinical skills, and professional attitudes in nursing through guidance, supervision, role modeling, and personal development of the student. They also help to orient and socialize the student to the real nursing workplace environment. Being a preceptor in nursing has been identified as time-consuming and requiring clinical teaching skills that many registered nurses (RNs) perceive they do not possess. This article outlines how a small group of RNs from one selected workplace developed their preceptor abilities through undertaking the preceptor program run by Avondale College to prepare them for this important role.

The importance of informatics competencies in nursing: an Australian perspective.

Over the past two decades, dramatic changes have occurred in the nature and extent of communication and information technology use in nursing worldwide. The need for student nurses to be well prepared for the use and application of information technology in nursing is arguably now paramount. This article details areas where information and communication technology is used in nursing in Australia and discusses why nurses must be diligent in maintaining skills in this area to facilitate the delivery of safe, quality care in any healthcare setting. It will then discuss the importance of information and communication technology (ICT) skills, knowledge and understanding as an integral aspect of nursing programs in tertiary institutions. The challenge for training providers to prepare nurses for ever-changing ICT technology and technological applications in their workplace is highlighted.