Facilitating Learning in the Clinical Environment Essay

This essay critically evaluates strategies to promote an effective clinical learning environment, focusing on a passion-centered teaching philosophy within a paediatric acute care setting. It begins by introducing the importance of clinical learning environments for nursing students and the role of teaching philosophy in shaping them. The essay explores the challenges faced by students and instructors, including high tuition costs and demanding clinical placements. It then delves into the components of a teaching philosophy, discussing curriculum design, program models, and the four key subparts of a teaching philosophy. The essay highlights the goals of clinical teaching, such as enhancing student skills and promoting clinical independence, and emphasizes the importance of a positive learning environment. The core of the essay focuses on the passion-centered philosophy, outlining factors like passion for trust, achievement, commitment, caring, and collaboration, and how they contribute to an effective learning environment. The paper uses relevant literature to support its arguments and concludes by summarizing the key points and drawing conclusions about the importance of a well-designed and supportive clinical learning experience. The essay emphasizes the need for effective teaching strategies and the role of a passion-centered approach in achieving positive outcomes for nursing students.

Running head: MEDICAL
LEARNING IN THE CLINICAL ENVIRONMENT
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1MEDICAL
On an introductory note, it can be stated that all students associated with the medical
field (especially nursing) are evaluated in a clinical learning environment. In this
environment knowledge and skills gathered throughout the year by the nurses are applied to
patient care. These environments are similar to classrooms since they affect the achievement
of learning outcomes and the student satisfaction associated with the nursing profession. In a
clinical environment, teaching and simultaneous learning have been found to focus on the
direct involvement of patient associated problems for the evaluation of nursing students.
There are various clinical environments including hospital outpatient, inpatient and
community settings along with their own distinct challenges (Flott and Linden 2016). A good
clinical environment is supported by reflections, regular feedbacks and practical pieces of
advice from the head or the supervisor. All the three supportive factors have been found to
improve the practical competence of the student, motivation, confidence and the self-esteem
of the nursing student. All these factors when showing a positive correlation has been found
to represent a very positive role during clinical training. Clinical placements have been
designed to provide a chance to the students for their integration of practice with the gathered
knowledge (Papastavrou et al. 2016). This environment helps the student to build confidence,
professional identity and knowledge which helps in the consolidation of clinical skill
development. For the establishment of an effective clinical learning environment, the
selection of teaching philosophy plays a significant role. Teaching philosophy can be defined
as a self-reflective statement which is based on the beliefs about learning and teaching. A
teaching philosophy is associated with the development of ideas with concrete and specific
examples about what a leaner and the teachers should do to achieve the goals. Every teaching
philosophy statement has been found to explain the three points stated in the previous line.
This statement is a reflective and purposeful statement about the teachers' practices and their
associated beliefs with clinical learning. This statement is an individual narrative which

2MEDICAL
includes one's beliefs about teaching or learning in a clinical environment and the way he or
she spreads the beliefs inside a classroom. In today's clinical learning environments, it can be
observed that both the learners and instructors face extraordinary challenges associated with
health care workplaces. High tuition costs and unmanageable debts have been found to be the
major barrier to competition to achieve top marks for a long time (Serçekuş and Başkale
2016). Many nursing students have been found to travel to several distant clinical sites by
balancing heavy study commitment. Teaching philosophy plays a significant role during the
process of clinical learning. Thus, the creation of an effective clinical learning environment
becomes an urgent requirement today. In, this paper, the clinical learning environment will be
discussed and critically evaluated based on the selected teaching philosophy. This essay
began with an introduction, will be followed by the main body discussing the critical
evaluation and finally ending in a brief conclusion.
Healthcare education programs inside the universities have been found to complete
practicums inside the clinical environment associated with academic classes. Most of the
health-based professions have been found to consider clinical practicums essential for the
development of professional competence. In the list of planned experiences required, the
curriculum has been observed as the first point of teaching philosophy required to use a
planned learning experience (Mikkonen et al. 2017). A curriculum has been found to include
a range of experiences and courses which the nursing students must complete to graduate.
Curricula have been found to include a philosophical approach including designs and
outcomes including course works and evaluation strategies. Curricula have been found to
address all the discipline-specific competencies. Problems associated with distance learning
is to be reduced inside a clinical environment. When the programs are delivered at a certain
distance, the learners might have to travel and finally find accommodation inside a
geographical area which is required to attend their practicums. Another essential

3MEDICAL
consideration of the clinical learning environment is a program model or an organization that
requires elective courses and laboratory experiences for graduation (Berntsen, Bjørk and
Brynildsen 2017). The development of this program model has been found to guide the
instruction method which will be used in the learning organization. One of the most effective
program models for nursing clinical learning environments is teaching in small groups by a
teacher which gives rise to a one to one interaction with the students. Combination of the
above process with other instructional methods has been found to facilitate the process of
learning inside a clinical environment.
A teaching philosophy mainly includes four subparts. These subparts include the
reason for teaching, what is being taught, how it is being taught and the evaluation of the
effectiveness of the philosophy (Joyce, Lamey and Martin 2018). The first subpart is the
challenges associated with paediatric acute care centres which become the main reason to
select a teaching philosophy for creating a clinical learning environment inside the same
centre. The main course works will include all the academic and practical works that need to
be full filled to become a graduate nurse in the field of the paediatric acute centre. Teaching
will be done based on both digital and non-digital methods. Practical will not only involve the
live patient as samples but will include simulation programs. A combination of all these will
give rise to a passion centred teaching philosophy for the facilitation of nursing in the clinical
environment.
Designing a program has been found to play an essential in configuring the program
of studies which includes the selected course, relationship with the course, practicum
experiences and policies which are needed to communicate the information. Various designs
have been found to include blocks required for building the study that establishes specific
task opportunities. Teaching philosophy associated with clinical learning environments
mostly includes hospital areas of surgery, medicine, maternity, medicine and psychiatry

4MEDICAL
framed locus points (Woodward et al. 2019). This learning model has been found to improve
the understanding pattern of the students associated with clinical learning. There are few
goals of clinical teaching because clinical preceptors have been found to have a great
responsibility which training the nursing students which has been found to take place in a
high workload and fast-paced environment. The main goals which are proposed include an
increase in student's skills and knowledge, refining the efficiency and effectiveness of
practice, promotion of clinical independence, preparing the students for an optimal health
outcome associated with patients and becoming competent, independent, compassionate and
a collaborative clinician. The establishment of a positive learning environment is the primary
requirement for any clinical learning process (Kim and Shin 2017). A positive tone from the
clinician has been found to make the students feel welcomed and nurtured. Creation of an
environment such as that stated before found that the teachers and students valued each other
(Arkan, Ordin and Yılmaz 2018). Demonstration of caring and sensitivity has been found to
help the nursing students in achieving their desired outcomes. According to a conference
report, it can be stated that the quality of education has increased after the use of essential and
high-quality mentors (Andersen and Watkins 2018). The main aspects of a preceptor's ability
for the establishment of best clinical learning environment have been found to include model
best practices, uphold ethical and legal practices, providing timely feedback and encouraging
lifelong learning has been found to improve the clinical learning experiences of the students
(Kolman, Roegman and Goodwin 2017). Another important factor associated with this
teaching philosophy in a clinical environment includes mutual respect between the student
and the clinical preceptor. This respect is gained by not calling the students for their mistakes
or tasks in front of everyone and punishing or disrespecting them. Maintaining effective
communication between the teacher and student helps in the establishment of the safe and
effective clinical learning environment. Factors such as ineffective teaching strategies have

5MEDICAL
been found to demonstrate poor teaching skills which have no structure in the teaching
process and settles an unrealistic expectation. Students with poor mentors have been found to
cope only after making a philosophical stance by attempting the reduction of time spent with
all the particular preceptor and discussing the same with the educator. These factors have
been reported to hamper the establishment of an effective clinical learning environment.
The teaching philosophy selected for this paper is a passion centred philosophy taken
as a framework for clinical teaching (Young, Bonanno-Sotiropoulos and Smolinski 2018).
The care setting selected for the clinical learning environment is the paediatric acute care
setting. According to various observations, it has been noted that clinical education inside the
acute paediatric care setting has been found to become increasingly challenging (Phillips
2018). Various factor such as high acuity of paediatric clientele and nursing staff shortages
has been found to be highly focused and family centred. Nursing students have been found to
be technically competent which is a primary requirement for a clinical learning environment.
In today's life, any types of teaching environment require the use of digital technology in
order to distribute study materials or organize evaluation tests. This clinical experience has
been found to be essential to nursing education and it is associated with the foundation for
bridging the gap in between practice and theory. Passion in teaching philosophy has been
used to illustrate the establishment of an effective clinical learning environment (George
2016). Passion has been defined as the strong emotion which has an intense and
overmastering feeling. According to a research paper, it can be stated that “The Passion of
Successful Leadership” has been found to offer a specific theoretical framework for the
passion in teaching which is associated with the foundation for the success of students in
learning. The passion centred philosophy has been found to describe five factors for the
establishment of a clinical environment which will be effective for future nurses. These
factors are a passion for trust, passion for achievement, passion for commitment, passion for

6MEDICAL
caring and passion for collaboration. A passion for commitment has been found to allow the
educators in engaging themselves with the intellectuality and emotional condition of the
student. Accurate and evidence-based teaching practices have been found to be a reflection of
the current clinical environment. This evidence has been found to demonstrate the passion
and commitment to nursing education which leads to an increased rate of effectiveness in
teachers which further leads to enhanced clinical learning. Passion for achievement has been
identified as one of the overcoming factors for the complex challenges associated with
nursing education (Griffiths et al. 2019). Development of learning experiences which fosters
confidence in the knowledge and clinical skills of the nursing students have been found to be
one of the main factors associated with the passion for achievement philosophy. However, it
some research studies, it has been argued that only strong students especially who were
competent, courageous, committed and concerned about their course were admired by the
teachers. Researches have been found to answer the fact that an effective clinical faculty
gives rise to an effective learning environment. A passion for trust has been found to develop
a safe and supportive learning environment in which the nursing student’s skills are
discovered and cultivated inside the clinical learning environment (Mikkonen et al. 2017).
This factor makes it clear the students who utilize the clinical learning environment at its full
course are stated to give rise to well-educated and graduated nurses for the future generation
(Berntsen, Bjørk and Brynildsen 2017). According to various pieces of literature, it has been
found that a good and educated nurse evolves from the strong and professional partnership in
between the teacher and student which involves the cooperation and the mutual relationship
as both the groups are working to achieve a common goal (Armstrong et al. 2017). Trust has
been identified as the central component required for learning and has been found to be
important in considering the factors that enhance the trust development in between the
teacher and the student. Trust has also been identified as the teacher’s capacity to develop a

7MEDICAL
mutual and respectful partnership with the student in order to influence the vision for
transformational clinical education to include the quality as the central value. Since trust has
been identified as the central component of learning which is important for the consideration
of factors that enhances the development of trust between the teacher and student.
Transparent teaching has been found to include clear communication, the student is easily
able to express themselves to the teacher and finally admit to any failure due to lack of
knowledge without making the teacher responsible for the failure.
The passion for caring has been found to involve the creation of a teaching
environment which encourages a discussed and debate including the values which supports
the ideas of nursing students and regards them as essential individuals of the clinical learning
environment. Positive clinical experiences have been found to be likely related to the values
and supports which the student feels (Lee et al. 2017). Facilitation of the relationship has
been found to be established by an environment which shares the learning responsibilities to
give the students freedom to share new ideas. This passion philosophy helps in the
development of an empathetic, trusting, supportive and an open clinical learning environment
(Bradshaw 2016). Each of the students has been found to belong to a unique background
which has varied experiences of life which necessitated the individualized approaches.
Students have been found to enter the clinical context with a great deal of stress which is
related to their roles associated with academia (Papastavrou et al. 2016). The background of
the student has been found to play a significant role in maintaining a strong teacher-student
relationship which enhances the effectiveness of the clinical learning process. However, there
are various observed limitations to the passion centred philosophy of teaching in a clinical
learning environment. During the continuous support of the notion that teaching in a passion
centred philosophy can promote the development of a positive learning and safe environment,
some limitations have also been spotted to be connected to it. The primary limitation of this

8MEDICAL
framework has been found to be applicable to all the nursing cultures. In some of the
countries, this process is not acceptable as the teaching philosophy for nursing education.
This factor has been identified as one of the major causes of failure of this philosophy in
enhancing the clinical learning environment. This philosophy has been found to be effective
in the clinical learning environment only. Despite these limitations, it can be stated that
passion centred teaching philosophy of nursing education has been found to be a practical
guide for the teachers to develop a professional nursing leader for clinical education who are
not only competent but also knowledge.
On a concluding note, it can be stated that all students associated with the medical
field (especially nursing) are evaluated by using passion centred philosophy in a clinical
learning environment. In this environment knowledge and skills gathered throughout the year
by the nurses are applied to patient care. This paper showed that these environments are
similar to classrooms since they affect the achievement of learning outcomes and the student
satisfaction associated with the nursing profession. After going through various literature
pieces, it can be stated that n a clinical environment, simultaneous learning and teaching has
been found to focus on the direct involvement of patient associated problems for the
evaluation of nursing students. Hospital outpatient, inpatient and community settings along
with their own distinct challenges are included in the list of clinical environments. According
to all the research studies discussed in the body, it can be said that a good clinical
environment is supported by reflections, regular feedbacks and practical pieces of advice
from the head or the supervisor. Three supportive factors have been found to improve the
practical competence of the student, confidence, motivation and the self-esteem of the
nursing student. All these factors when showing a positive correlation has been found to
represent a very positive role during clinical training. The perks of clinical placements are
that clinical placements have been designed to provide a chance to the students for their

9MEDICAL
integration of practice with the gathered knowledge. This environment helps the student to
build confidence, professional identity and knowledge which helps in the consolidation of
clinical skill development. In today's clinical learning environments, it can be observed that
both the learners and instructors face extraordinary challenges associated with health care
workplaces. High tuition costs and unmanageable debts have been found to be the major
barrier to competition to achieve top marks for a long time. Many nursing students have been
found to travel to several distant clinical sites by balancing heavy study commitment.
Teaching philosophy plays a significant role during the process of clinical learning. Various
strategies have been found to be offered in the literature pieces to promote success in nursing
education. Each of the theories has been found to lead to the achievement of basic learning
needs. Some papers stated that there is no simple formula for solving the issues associated
with the pediatric clinical learning environment. The development of student-teacher
relationship has been found to promote clinical thinking which is the answer to all the
questions leading to the goal of a nursing student and their teacher. The safe and rewarding
clinical learning environment has been found to be affected by the philosophical beliefs of the
teacher. Five essential features of the philosophy of passion can be concluded to be effective
for the establishment of an effective clinical environment. The nursing students can be stated
to deserve this philosophy of approach to get a bright future in their carrier.

10MEDICAL
References
Andersen, T. and Watkins, K., 2018. The value of peer mentorship as an educational strategy
in nursing. Journal of Nursing Education, 57(4), pp.217-224.
Arkan, B., Ordin, Y. and Yılmaz, D., 2018. Undergraduate nursing students' experience
related to their clinical learning environment and factors affecting to their clinical learning
process. Nurse education in practice, 29, pp.127-132.
Armstrong, G., Horton-Deutsch, S., Sherwood, G.D. and Dreifuerst, K., 2017. Reflection in
clinical contexts: learning, collaboration, and evaluation.
Berntsen, K., Bjørk, I.T. and Brynildsen, G., 2017. Nursing Students' Clinical Learning
Environment in Norwegian Nursing Homes: Lack of Innovative Teaching and Learning
Strategies. Open Journal of Nursing, pp.949-961.
Bradshaw, M.J., 2016. Philosophical approaches to clinical instruction. Innovative Teaching
Strategies in Nursing and Related Health Professions, p.311.
Flott, E.A. and Linden, L., 2016. The clinical learning environment in nursing education: a
concept analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 72(3), pp.501-513.
George, S.A., 2016. Exploring place-based learning as a model to transform teaching
practice and foster a passion for teaching (Doctoral dissertation, University of Hawai'i at
Manoa).
Griffiths, M., Fenwick, J., Gamble, J. and Creedy, D.K., 2019. Midwifery Student Evaluation
of Practice: The MidSTEP tool—Perceptions of clinical learning experiences. Women and
Birth.

11MEDICAL
Joyce, K.E., Lamey, A. and Martin, N., 2018. Teaching Philosophy Through a Role-
Immersion Game: Reacting to the Past. Teaching Philosophy.
Kim, E.K. and Shin, S., 2017. Teaching efficacy of nurses in clinical practice education: A
cross-sectional study. Nurse education today, 54, pp.64-68.
Kolman, J.S., Roegman, R. and Goodwin, A.L., 2017. Learner-centered mentoring: Building
from student teachers’ individual needs and experiences as novice practitioners. Teacher
Education Quarterly, 44(3), pp.93-117.
Lee, N., Appelbaum, N., Amendola, M., Dodson, K. and Kaplan, B., 2017. Improving
resident well-being and clinical learning environment through academic initiatives. Journal
of Surgical Research, 215, pp.6-11.
Mikkonen, K., Elo, S., Miettunen, J., Saarikoski, M. and Kääriäinen, M., 2017. Clinical
learning environment and supervision of international nursing students: A cross-sectional
study. Nurse education today, 52, pp.73-80.
Mikkonen, K., Elo, S., Miettunen, J., Saarikoski, M., and Kääriäinen, M. (2017). Clinical
learning environment and supervision of international nursing students: A cross-sectional
study. Nurse education today, 52, 73-80.
Papastavrou, E., Dimitriadou, M., Tsangari, H. and Andreou, C., 2016. Nursing students’
satisfaction of the clinical learning environment: a research study. BMC nursing, 15(1), p.44.
Papastavrou, E., Dimitriadou, M., Tsangari, H. and Andreou, C., 2016. Nursing students’
satisfaction of the clinical learning environment: a research study. BMC nursing, 15(1), p.44.
Phillips, W., 2018. Pursuing personal passion: learner-centered research mentoring. Family
medicine, 50(1), pp.41-46.