Exploration and analysis of the application of the internet of things in nursing education in the 5G era: innovation of nursing education methods

BACKGROUND: Nursing education is of great significance for cultivating high-quality nursing professionals. The introduction of Internet of Things (IoT) technology can create new opportunities for the development of nursing education. This study aims to explore the application value, application models, main challenges, and future development directions of IoT technology in nursing education in the 5G era, and to put forward corresponding suggestions, so as to provide a practical reference for nursing educators to introduce smart teaching methods. METHODS: A literature search was conducted in the PubMed, CiteXplore, and CNKI databases using specific keywords and terms. A total of 8024 articles were retrieved, of which 70 were ultimately selected for inclusion in this narrative review. The thematic induction method was employed to organize and analyze the literature, aiming to extract the core value, application models, existing challenges, and development suggestions for the application of IoT in nursing education. RESULTS: The core value of IoT technology in nursing education is primarily reflected in four aspects: enhancing students' clinical practice experience, improving teaching efficiency for educators, increasing the practical relevance of specialized nursing fields, and enhancing students' clinical practice readiness. This technology can be deeply integrated into both theoretical and practical teaching, permeating all teaching segments including pre-class, in-class, and post-class activities, thereby forming diverse smart teaching application models. However, the current promotion and application of IoT in nursing education still face multiple challenges, mainly including privacy and data security issues, technological dependence and risks of equipment malfunction, as well as insufficient acceptance of new technologies by teachers and students. CONCLUSION: IoT technology holds significant promise for application in nursing education and can effectively promote innovation and development in nursing teaching methods. Future efforts should focus on ensuring data privacy and security, reducing technological dependency, and enhancing equipment stability and user acceptance to facilitate the deep integration of IoT technology with nursing education.