Examining perspectives of instructors and students on the instruction of care plans within the nursing process - a qualitative inquiry.

Objectives: This study aims to systematically explore the perspectives of nursing instructors and students concerning the pedagogical aspects of patient care plan instruction.

Methods: This qualitative descriptive study was conducted between October 10, 2022, and January 17, 2023, at a public university in Ankara, Turkey. Data were gathered through seven focus group interviews involving eight instructors and 27 students, employing semi-structured interview questions. Thematic analysis was used.

Results: The average age of the nurse educators was 36.87 years; all were female, 75 % had a Ph.D. degree, and the average number of years of professional experience was 10.12. The average age of the students was 20.40 years; 66.67 % were female, and 40.74 % were second-year students. After examining interview data, three overarching themes emerged for instructors and students: Clinical Teaching Conditions of the Nursing Process, Engaging with Care Plans in Practice, and Strengthening Care Plan Teaching.

Conclusions: The findings underscored a notable challenge: instructors struggled to provide optimal interaction with students due to overwhelming group sizes during care plan activities. Concurrently, students faced difficulties across all phases of the nursing process when formulating patient care plans. To strengthen the teaching of specific patient care planning, it is recommended that the number of faculty members be increased and that information and communication technologies be used in clinical education.

Implications for an international audience: This study's findings can help nursing faculties understand the various dimensions of the needs of nursing process education. Furthermore, nurse instructors' and students' opinions can promote technology integration in nursing education.