INTRODUCTION

The clinical teaching methods is a type of group conference in which a patient or patient or patients are
observed and studied ,discussed ,demonstrated and directed towards the improvement and further
improvement of nursing care . Clinical teaching may be given by any faculty member that is clinical
instructor or tutor or ward staff and will concentrate one particular patient’s needs as a person and how the
doctor’s treatment orders can be met by the by the right understanding and nursing care.

DEFINITION

The ideal way to teach clinical nursing is centre the teaching on specific patients.

PURPOSE

1. To provide individualized care in a systematic, holistic approach.

2. To develop high technical competent skills.
3. To practice various procedures.
4. To collect and analyse the data.
5. To conduct research.
6. To maintain high standard of nursing practice.
7. To become independent enough to practice nursing.
8. To develop cognitive, conative, affective and psychomotor skills.
9. The students will develop the techniques e.g. Observation.
10. To meet the needs of a client.
11. To improve the standards of nursing practice.
12. To develop various methods in delivering care.
13. To identify the problems of clients.
14. To learn various diagnostic procedures.
15. To learn various skill in giving health education techniques to the client and significant others
16. To help in integration of theoretical knowledge into practice.
17. To develop communication skills and maintain interpersonal relationship
18. To maintain inter- institutional relationship
19. To develop proficiency and efficiency in carrying out various nursing procedures
20. To learn managerial skills.
21. To become professionally active member.
22. To encounter reality in the practice of nursing, synthesis learning, practice activities described in the
course objectives.

METHODS

1. Nursing care conference

2. Bedside clinic
3. Nursing round
4. Process recording
5. Ward teaching
6. Ward clinics
7. Case Method
8. Brainstorming method
9. Demonstration method
10. Morning Evening Report
11. Health talks
1. Nursing care conference:

It is a method of teaching which provides an opportunity for an informal discussion of a problem and free
exchange of knowledge and experience about the common interest and it consists of a group discussion-
using problem solving techniques or nursing process. A nursing care conference is designed around a
consultation visit of clinical nurse specialists.
Purposes:-

 To portray the nursing problems typically associated with a particular disease with such factors as
social, age , or ethical background and to picture the related nursing care with a specific individual .
 To learn ways to help clients identify their needs and solve their own problems.
 To suggest approaches to the patient and planning ways to help himself
Planning and preparation:-
1. The organizers should prepare well in advance regarding particular conference.
2.Before presenting ,the student will have collected all data regarding the patient .She will have worked with
that patient and collected information about sings and symptoms since how long the patient is sick. What are
the laboratory finding, What about his family backgrounds, socio-economic conditions. Etc.
3. The conference should be planned in relation to the objective of the conference and it should be
spontaneous in nature.
4. The student should be given many opportunities to work in the ward for quite a good amount of time
before she is assigned to present in the conference.
Advantages:

 It is used to plan for the daily continuity of nursing care that best meets the patient’s need.
 As a teaching tool, nursing team conference, offers valuable opportunities for learning.
 It gives an ability to observe, report and analyse significant findings input to its greatest test as
students are confronted with their daily responsibility

2. Bedside clinic:

As we all know a planned teaching should not be restricted to the classroom only .It is to carryout in the
clinical area .It is one of the best methods of teaching . The purpose of the bedside clinic is to portray
thenursing problems and to give viva picture of the related nursing care by associating it with a specific
individual
Purposes:
1. To provide a learning experience for the nursing student to collect information about the patient with
tact and skill.
2. To improve the students ability to solve nursing problems by detailed study and analyses of nursing
situation
3. To realize the need for understanding each patient as an individual in order to appreciate his problems
and outlook
4. It helps the students to do observation in an organized systematic way
5. To be able to work out a nursing care plans to fit the needs of individual patient on the basis of his
special problems
6. To be able to recognize opportunities for health teaching in the hospital
7. To understand certain types of apparatus being used on patients
8. To improve the quality of nursing care .
Steps involved in conducting the bedside clinic:
Planning technique:
Determine the clinic to whom it is to be conducted, place, date and time of clinic to be held and on what
topic the students have to come prepared. Select a patient for whom students have given the care. Secure
the patient’s consent as his co-operation is essential during the clinic.
Conducting bedside clinic:
After preplan, the next step is conducting actual clinic. The clinic should be conducted in the ward or in a
classroom, which is adjacent to the ward. If such conveniences are not there, the clinic should be held apart
from other patients providing him sufficient privacy in a corner of the ward.
Physical and mental is provided to patients.
Patient is kept at ease.
The clinic usually lasts for 30 minutes.
The number of student should not exceed 10-15 in number.
The discussion relative to the nursing clinic consists of three phrases.
1.Introduction phase: If serves to acquaint the student with the patient background, presenting nursing care
situation, the purpose of the clinic, significant observation to be made, type of question to be asked, etc.
2.Patient centred discussion: During this phase a few simple questions are asked to obtain the needed
information from patient. No question which hurts the feelings of the patient should be asked .Ample
opportunities should be allowed for the patient to verbalize the needs and how he perceives his particular
problem .soon after second phase of clinic patients should be sent to the ward by thanking him for his
cooperation
3.Post clinic evaluation :It offers an excellent opportunities for students to evaluate the patient
behaviour ,ability to solve his own problems and various other aspects .The student can be evaluated in-
terms of their ability to meet the stated purposes of clinic through their observations ability to use problem
solving technique
Advantages:

 It puts the students in an active actual situation

 Covers a limited group of students
 Permits evaluation of degree to which educational objectives have been attained
 Develops qualities of observation and decision making
 Ensures closer contact with reality
 Permits comparison between reality and theory
 Enables students to develop a self-confidence
 Increases variability
Disadvantages:
  High personnel costs
 Sometimes puts the patient in a difficult situation
 Poor standardization
 Narrow limits of utilization.

3. Nursing Rounds
It is an excursion into patient’s area involving the students learning experiences .Nursing rounds revealed
that students responded to this method of teaching with enthusiasm .Their interest in learning increased and
they showed ability to share ideas and knowledge with others for the benefit of patients.
Purposes:-

 To demonstrate symptoms important in nursing care

 Clarify terminology studied
 To compare patient’s reaction to disease and study the disease conditions
 To demonstrate effects of drugs i.e. indication ,actions and reactions of drugs
 To illustrate skilful nursing care
 To compare method of meeting nursing needs and to have better understanding and to give more
purposeful care to patients
 To illustrate successful improvisation and to give opportunity for the use of different applications
Factors to be kept in mind when planning nursing rounds:
1. To consult student’s previous clinical experience to avoid repetition and to add to earlier experience
2.Keep in mind the probable value and availability of clinical material
3. If some demonstration is done, it should not have deleterious effect on the patient
4. Explain the plan to the patient
5. Introduce the patient to the group
6. Make the patient feel important
7. Have post conference for summary and further explanation
8. Record the nursing rounds in the ward teaching records with summary of nursing points stressed
Advantages

 Demonstration of symptoms
 To clarify terminology
 Herpes simplex
 Effects of drug
 Skilful nursing care
 Progressing improvement of bedsore
 Maintenance of adequate fluid intake (oral)
 Successful improvisation
 Use of a chair as backrest
 Device for support of ice bag
 Posture and position as indicated for individual patients
Disadvantages:

 Needs good preparation and time consuming

  Patients may feel embarrassed about their condition and anxious.
 Only a small group of staff or students are benefited at a time.

4. Process Recording:-
Definition:
“A verbatim between nurse and the patient”
-Walker
Uses: There are mainly 3 uses
A) As a teaching-learning tool
B) As an evaluation tool
C) As a therapeutic tool.
Different phases in process recording:
1. Preparing the student for process recording
2. Recording nurse-patient interaction
3. Evaluating the interactions by nurse teacher and the student.
Guidelines to student:

 Your goals for working with assigned patients should be written down before starting the process
recording Note important factors in patient’s personality development
 Mention about the therapies which patient is getting both past and present
 Date of process recording should be mentioned
 Amount of time you spent with patient should be recorded
 A brief description should be written about the setting and situation before your conversation
 Identify the patient’s needs (as represented by patient behaviour
 Identify mental mechanisms that you think the patient is using and give examples
 After completion of process record ,give your comment on how well you were able to meet the goals
which you set before starting your work
 Evaluate the process record as a learning experience for you at the end of the assignment

5. Ward Teaching
PURPOSES:

 To supplement, to integrate and to utilize classroom instruction.

 To aid the student to make correct applications of scientific principles basic to a particular nursing
activity.
 To enable the student to gain a real understanding of individual differences and substitute variations
of case and circumstances to fact fully respond and adjust to them by adopting nursing procedure and
treatment without violating basic principles.
 A class will be conducted based upon current clinical experience of the student for whom the class is
planned. Small group should be planned that is, all the students at one level of experience, who are
having similar, experience, who are having similar experience in particular department.

6. Ward Clinic
  In this type, a client is presented to the group, who illustrates all signs and symptoms and require all
nursing case procedures.
 Permission should be taken from the physician.
 Instructor should explain beforehand, to the client about the purpose of the clinic.
 The students will be able to practice procedure in real situation.
 Suitable place should be selected.
 Student should understand the purpose on improving the standards of nursing care and their
contributions should be directed towards at its end.

7. Case Method
1. Case study
2. Case analysis
3. Case incident technique

Case study/ Case presentation:

The student will be given the opportunity to provide nursing care for specific client, after 4 or 5 days of
careful study, the student nurse will prepare case study by comparing with the text, the student presents
the case before the batch of companions, general discussion about the client will be dealt.
Case Analysis:
A concrete case for analysis and discussion by a group of students under the leadership of the instructor.
Sufficient information is presented to the students to make judgment of problem or situation in case.
Case Incident technique:
A critical incident technique which requires immediate decision and action is taken from a case and
presented to the students for their analysis and decision .No background information is given to them
regarding details of the incident at the time ,it is presented .The instructor will have facts about the care
can be given as requested by the students.

8. Brainstorming method
Here the intellectual capacities of trainees will be utilized in solving or suggesting solutions to problems and
make the group to become active and answer the problems among them only . The instructor will acts as a
referee and give answers for the unsolved problems.
For example the cancelling of AIDS –in this topic the expert in thefield will make certain opinion regarding
AIDS and make the group into 2 or more sections,according to the number of trainees will be given one
paper to write opinions and will give 3 minutes time and request whether it falls into high ,low ,do not know
like ,she has to give explanation.
Then the referee will ask other groups ,are they satisfied with that particular explanation .if no ,trainee is
answering correctly for any problems ,then the trainees will be expert would clarify it. Here the brain of the
trainees will be sharpened and the entire class will participate in discussion ,group will become active and
enthusiastic.

9. Demonstration method
Uses:

 To demonstrate procedures in the classroom and the ward

 To demonstrate experiments and its use.
 To teach the patient, a procedure or treatment which he must carryout in home.
 To demonstrate different approaches in establishing rapport with patients, so that the most effective
nurse patient relationship may be established.
10.Morning Evening Report
A morning report is a kind of report that states the status and progress of a team or project. It is sent to the
recipients in the morning or at the beginning of the workday.
Definition
Morning reports are done by medical staffs in hospitals at the start of the workday or in the middle of patient
care rounds. This is to endorse pertinent information about the patients, allowing the health care providers to
give continuous care to the patients.
Advantages
Every basic unit of the army also generates a morning report. The unit clerk, noting personnel changes for
the day, usually does this. While morning reports provide adequate information about the team and the
project, they also present some disadvantages.
Disadvantages
The first concern is the punctuality of information. Since morning reports are done in the morning, team
members are required to present information as soon as possible at the beginning of the workday. However,
it cannot be avoided that there are times in which some team members are late for some reasons, such as
heavy traffic or heavy rain. These circumstances prevent the team members to deliver information in the
earliest possible time.
Another disadvantage of morning reports is change in information. Since information is sent early during
daytime, data are subject to change as the hours go by. Fast-paced change in information may lead to
confusion on other team members, which could lead to outdate information entered in the report.
Writing morning reports is a good way to disseminate information to a group of people, since the
information is delivered to the team in an early manner. This approach of updating the team in the morning
allows the team to incorporate information to their plans for the day and for the succeeding days. In addition,
reading the problems encountered by other members can help the team, since possible or executed solutions
can be discussed to solve or prevent potential problems of the team.

11.Health talks
This method will be used when teaching for clients and their relation or amass .It can be used in hospital and
in community. For example, educating the mass about health and its aspect. Health talks can be conducted
incidentally and in a planned manner.

CONCLUSION
Clinical area really poses a great challenge to nursing teachers. Professional competency of a nurse is
recognized mainly by the demonstration of clinical skills. So the above said clinical teaching methods will
be helpful for the student to develop appreciable level of nursing skills
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
 B.T Basavanthappa (2003), “Nursing Education“ Ist edition,published by Jaypee brothers, New
Delhi. Pp No: 359- 384.
 Jean Barrette (2004), “Ward Management and Education”, 14thedition, komark publishers Pp:357-
368
 K.P. Neeraja , ( 2003 ) “ Text book of Nsg education “ Istedition , by Jaypee brothers , New Delhi ,
Pp No : 231-235