Effect of a Chatbot on Nursing Students' Self-Efficacy in Pediatric Medication Administration (CHATPED)

July 11, 2026 updated by: Tugba KARAKUS TURKER

Effect of a Chatbot-Supported Clinical Training on Nursing Students' Self-Efficacy in Pediatric Medication Administration: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This study looked at whether a chatbot can help nursing students feel more confident about giving medicines to children. Giving medicines to children is difficult because doses depend on the child's weight, and mistakes can be harmful. Third-year nursing students starting their pediatric clinical placement took part. They were divided by chance into two groups. Both groups received the usual training. One group also used a chatbot that helped with medicine dose calculations and answered questions about giving medicines to children, based on a trusted nursing textbook. The other group used only the usual references. Students' confidence in giving medicines to children was measured with a questionnaire before and after the placement. The study compared how much each group's confidence changed to see whether the chatbot added a benefit beyond the usual training.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This was a two-group, parallel, pre-test-post-test randomized controlled trial evaluating the effect of a chatbot-supported clinical training on nursing students' self-efficacy in pediatric medication administration. The trial was reported in accordance with the CONSORT statement.

All eligible third-year nursing students entering the pediatric clinical placement were invited (complete enumeration), and 106 students who consented were enrolled. Participants were allocated to an experimental group (n=53) and a control group (n=53) using fixed block randomization (block size = 6).

Both groups received the routine curriculum. The experimental group additionally used a web-based chatbot before and during the placement. The chatbot contained two modules: a dose calculator (computing required drug amount and volume from the child's weight, prescribed dose, and drug concentration) and a question-answer assistant. The chatbot's content was drawn solely from a validated pediatric nursing reference textbook rather than free AI-generated responses. The control group accessed standard clinical references only. After the study, the control group was also offered access to the chatbot.

Data were analyzed using independent- and paired-samples t-tests and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with the pre-test score as a covariate.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
106

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Third-year nursing student
  • Entering the pediatric (child health and diseases) clinical placement for the first time
  • Owning a smartphone or computer
  • Providing voluntary informed consent to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Previous completion of a pediatric clinical placement
  • Prior participation in a similar educational intervention

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Experimental group
Participants received the routine curriculum and additionally used a web-based chatbot (a dose calculator and a book-based question-answer assistant) before and during the pediatric clinical placement.
Behavioral: Chatbot-supported training
A web-based chatbot accessible via mobile and desktop browsers, containing two modules: an advanced dose calculator that computes required drug amount and volume from the child's weight, prescribed dose, and drug concentration; and a question-answer assistant that responds to pediatric medication questions using content drawn solely from a validated pediatric nursing reference textbook.
No Intervention: Control group
Participants received the routine curriculum and accessed standard clinical references only, without the chatbot.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Self-efficacy in pediatric medication administration
Time Frame: Baseline (before the pediatric clinical placement) and post-intervention (after completion of the placement, approximately at the end of the clinical rotation). Baseline (Day 1) and post-intervention (Week 8)
Self-efficacy measured with the Medication Administration Self-Efficacy Scale in Children for Nursing Students (MASSCNS), a 16-item, 5-point Likert scale with total scores ranging from 16 to 80. Higher scores indicate greater self-efficacy. Change from pre-test to post-test was compared between groups.
Baseline (before the pediatric clinical placement) and post-intervention (after completion of the placement, approximately at the end of the clinical rotation). Baseline (Day 1) and post-intervention (Week 8)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Tugba KARAKUS TURKER

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 1, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 5, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 11, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
July 14, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
July 14, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 11, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • CHATBOT-PED-USKUDAR

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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