Are Fully Online Nursing Programs As Good As Face-to-Face Programs?

Are Fully Online Nursing Programs As Good As Face-to-Face Programs?
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Are Fully Online Nursing Programs As Good As Face-to-Face Programs?
Introduction
Many colleges have adopted fully integrated nursing programs; during this time, the world is fighting against the coronavirus pandemic. Instead of stopping school operations, e-learning has been the best method to ensure that nursing students acquire relevant knowledge and skills. Although fully online nursing programs are vital since they ensure the continuity of learning for nurses, they cannot be compared to the traditional face-to-face courses. In particular, online learning is effective for theoretical courses but not practical ones. Nursing combines practical and theoretical courses, which means that a hybrid learning method would be the most appropriate. As such, fully online nursing programs are not as good as face-to-face courses.
Asynchronous Learning
Asynchronous online nursing programs have no face-to-face interactions. Brian Conner asserts that the Internet has created numerous possibilities for caregivers since they can identify and study various nursing programs while still working. Some of the factors that learners need to consider include time, learning style, cost, and location (Conner, 2017). In particular, fully online nursing courses favor students since they attend virtual classes in the comfort of their homes. However, the most significant thing that learners are concerned about is the knowledge they acquire through such programs and its applicability in their career. Despite online nursing programs facilitating flexibility, they are only favorable for programs with no practical work. In that case, fully online nursing courses are not as good as face-to-face programs where students learn various ways to do things practically.
Transition from Face-to-Face to E-Learning
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly contributed to the rapid change of the education system from face-to-face to e-learning. Nevertheless, that transition is done to reduce the spread of coronavirus, but it does not mean that fully online nursing programs are effective, in the same way, as face-to-face learning. Ramos-Morcillo et al. (2020) conducted a study of 32 nursing students pursuing Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in two Spanish public universities (Ramos-Morcillo, Leal-Costa, Moral-Garcia, & Ruzafa-Martinez, 2020). Researchers found out that e-learning had various limitations that were absent in face-to-face learning. Participants cited problems such as uncertainties and the lack of practical work for various nursing methodologies. Moreover, they said that students found it difficult to ask for personal assistance during the class. In the long run, nursing students identified several challenges associated with e-learning, which were absent in face-to-face learning.
Hybrid Learning
The combination of online and face-to-face learning is the best for nursing programs. The primary reason why the hybrid learning method is appropriate for learning nursing courses is that it incorporates theoretical and practical skills. Terry et al. (2018) obs...