Phlebotomy for Nurses: Complex skill mastery through hands-on learning

Author and presenter

• Jordan de Hoog, School of Nursing, CoHM

Abstract

Nursing is a practical profession (Cui et al., 2024; Currie et al., 2023) and the ability to perform various clinical psychomotor skills is essential for nursing competency (Francis & O'Brien, 2019; Green, 2024; Hilleren et al., 2022). Significant interest exists in current literature regarding the use of online and digital learning tools in nursing education (Green, 2024; Gro Gade et al., 2024; Vasiliki Eirini et al., 2024), including simple clinical skills training (Li et al., 2024). However, for students to master complex, dexterous clinical psychomotor skills such as phlebotomy (sampling of blood from a vein using a needle), in-person expert skill demonstration (Burgess et al., 2020; Francis & O'Brien, 2019), stepwise explanation (Burgess et al., 2020; Francis & O'Brien, 2019), repeated student hands-on practice (Burgess et al., 2020; Francis & O'Brien, 2019; Hamdoni et al., 2024; Saad et al., 2023) and real-time feedback (Burgess et al., 2020; Francis & O'Brien, 2019; Saad et al., 2023) remain indispensable.

Phlebotomy for Nurses consists of a short online learning module, followed by an hour-long practical session in a simulated clinical environment. Following expert demonstration and explanation, students repeatedly practice the skill of phlebotomy on anatomically-accurate mannequins and receive real-time feedback with high tutor-to-student ratios. Student evaluations have demonstrated significantly increased self-rated competence in phlebotomy after attending this session, as well as high satisfaction scores.

This Exemplar of Education that Makes a Difference aims to showcase the ongoing value of high quality, in-person, hands-on teaching and learning for student mastery of complex practical skills.

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