Problem-based Learning in Nursing Education: A Review Article

Introduction: Public health services system needs nurses with problem solving and critical thinking skills. Thus, teaching methods must be applied to nurture these skills in students. This issue has led to attention toward Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in nursing. This study was done to investigate the effect of PBL in nursing through reviewing the related literature. Methods: Using the key words PBL, nursing education, and clinical environment, all the related studies done between 2000 and 2010 were selected on Medline, Proquest, and Ovid. The studies were then assessed based on learning stages occurring in PBL and 18 researches were selected. Results: The researches supported the positive effects of PBL method in theoretical and clinical nursing education. This study suggested that PBL promotes learning, critical thinking and conflict resolution skills. Conclusion: Considering the findings of the studied research papers, it is suggested that PBL be applied in teaching theoretical and clinical courses of nursing. Also nursing schools administrators should provide the proper conditions for applying this teaching method.