Final year nursing students' competency in managing vital signs and detecting patient deterioration: An integrative review

AIM: To critically explore and synthesize the gaps in managing vital signs and patient deterioration competency and learning of these skills among final year nursing students. BACKGROUND: Mastering vital signs assessment, recognizing and managing deterioration are fundamental nursing competencies and essential for preventing incidents in clinical practice. Previous research has identified deficiencies in vital signs assessment competencies among both practicing registered nurses and nursing students. DESIGN: An Integrative literature review METHODS: The database search from CINAHL, MEDLINE, SCOPUS and ERIC covered the years 2010-2025. The MMAT tool was used for appraisal, and the data were synthesized thematically. The PRISMA guidelines were followed for reporting findings of the review. RESULTS: A total of 14 studies were selected from nine different countries. According to the findings, final year nursing students had difficulties in remembering and interpreting vital signs values, transferring knowledge to practice, adopting systematic practice in vital sings assessment and comprehending the situation. Gaining skills was supported by perceived effectiveness of the teaching, possibility to practice repeatedly in a safe and realistic learning environment with feedback and exposure to real life. CONCLUSIONS: Inconsistency in graduating nursing students' skills in vital signs and deterioration detection ought to be addressed more in collaboration between academic nursing education, curriculum development and clinical practice. The focus should be on exploring how the learning of these core skills is transferred to clinical practice more efficiently and how the students would have more opportunities practice their skills and better-quality learning experiences mimicking real life.