Effectiveness of educational interventions to develop patient safety competencies in undergraduate nursing students: a systematic review

Background: Nursing professionals are key to providing safe care that improves patient outcomes. Hence, it is essential to focus on developing nurses’ patient safety competencies and principles. Purpose: This review examined the effectiveness of educational interventions in developing patient safety knowledge, skills, behaviors and attitudes in undergraduate nursing students. Methods: The search strategy aimed to identify published and unpublished studies in databases and grey literature. Studies were assessed using Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools. Results: A total of 36 studies met the inclusion criteria. The teaching methods employed single or combined interventions and the educational interventions suggested either improvements in outcomes or no impact. Conclusion: The effectiveness of educational interventions to develop patient safety competencies in undergraduate nursing students, either as a single or combined strategy, was mixed. Further research is needed to provide more robust evidence on which teaching method for patient safety is most effective.