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

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

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

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

106

Phase

  • 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

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
Intervention / Treatment
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

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

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)

January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

July 1, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

July 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 5, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 11, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

July 14, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 14, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 11, 2026

Last Verified

July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID 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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