Evaluation of Nursing Students' Experience of Clinical Placement in a Rural Setting Using CLES+T Scale.

Background: Nursing student experiences in the clinical learning environment have been described in many countries but less is known about student nurses in rural settings. Aim: To explore undergraduate nursing students' experience of clinical placement in a rural setting and identify factors that i...

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Published in:Nursing Reports Vol. 16; no. 4; pp. 132 - 146
Main Authors: Jokwiro, Yangama, Wang, Qiumian, Bassett, Jennifer, Connor, Sandra, Zimbudzi, Edward
Format: research tables/charts Journal Article
Published: MDPI Apr2026
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: Apr2026
      vid: 16
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      pub: MDPI
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        atl: Evaluation of Nursing Students' Experience of Clinical Placement in a Rural Setting Using CLES+T Scale.
      aug:
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          Jokwiro, Yangama
          Wang, Qiumian
          Bassett, Jennifer
          Connor, Sandra
          Zimbudzi, Edward
        affil: Department of Rural Health Sciences, La Trobe University, Bendigo, VIC 3550, Australia
      sug:
        subj:
          Students, Nursing, Baccalaureate
          Nurse Attitudes Evaluation
          Student Placement
          Rural Areas Australia
          Scales Utilization
          Education, Clinical
          Learning Environment
          Clinical Supervision
          Nurse Educators
          Human
          Australia
          Female
          Male
          Child
          Adolescence
          Adult
          Middle Age
          Cross Sectional Studies
          Nonexperimental Studies
          Convenience Sample
          Logistic Regression
          Odds Ratio
          Confidence Intervals
          Quality of Health Care
          Comparative Studies
          Chi Square Test
          T-Tests
          Child: 6-12 years
          Adolescent: 13-18 years
          Adult: 19-44 years
          Middle Aged: 45-64 years
          Female
          Male
      ab: Background: Nursing student experiences in the clinical learning environment have been described in many countries but less is known about student nurses in rural settings. Aim: To explore undergraduate nursing students' experience of clinical placement in a rural setting and identify factors that influence their experience. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted with a convenience sample of 170 undergraduate nursing students in regional Victoria, Australia, who completed professional experience placements between January and June 2020. Following their placements, participants completed the Clinical Learning Environment, Supervision and Nurse Teacher (CLES+T) scale. Data were analysed using logistic regression models. Results: Completing clinical placements in medium to small rural towns or remote and very remote communities were associated with increased odds of high scores in the learning environment [odds ratio (OR) 2.90, 95% CI, 1.32 to 6.37; P = 0.01] and the supervisory relationship domains (OR 3.16, 95% CI, 1.40 to 7.14; P = 0.01). Female gender (OR 3.38, 95% CI, 1.12 to 10.19; P = 0.03), supervision by staff other than an educator (OR 2.71, 95% CI, 1.16 to 6.33; P = 0.02) and increased frequency of ad hoc (extra) supervision with a buddy nurse without the nurse educator (OR 2.55, 95% CI, 1.07 to 4.75; P = 0.03) were associated with increased odds of high scores in the role of nurse educator domain. Conclusions: In this study, nursing students reported valuing their exposure to smaller and more remote communities, the learning environments within rural and remote healthcare facilities, and the relationships they developed with supervising nurses. The findings also suggest that some students perceived greater value in supervision provided by clinical staff who were not in formal nurse educator or nurse facilitator roles. Given the limitations of the study, these observations should be interpreted cautiously and may warrant further investigation in broader contexts.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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