Enhancing Male Nursing Students' Competence in Maternity Care: A Quasi-Experimental Study in Egypt

Maternity nursing requires advanced clinical competence, rapid decision-making, effective communication, and patient-centered care. While nursing education globally is shifting toward competency-based learning, male nursing students face considerable cultural and institutional restrictions during maternity clinical training. In Egypt, approximately 240 male nursing students enroll annually in maternity clinical courses at Delta University, with many reporting difficulty in obtaining direct patient contact during hospital rotations. Structured scenario-based clinical teaching and simulation training offer a safe, controlled environment where students can repeatedly practice essential obstetric and gynecological nursing skills without compromising patient comfort or safety.

Objectives Assess male nursing students' baseline knowledge, practical performance, and self-confidence in maternity nursing care prior to the intervention.

Implement a structured, scenario-based maternity nursing educational program using realistic simulation scenarios.

Evaluate changes in male nursing students' knowledge, procedural competence, self-confidence, and satisfaction following the implementation of the simulation scenarios.

Study Design \& Procedures Design: Quasi-experimental, single-group pre-test and post-test design (O_1 \rightarrow X \rightarrow O_2).

Setting: Faculty of Nursing, Delta University for Science and Technology, Egypt.

Sample: 150 male undergraduate nursing students selected via non-probability purposive sampling.

Intervention

Participants will complete a series of structured, scenario-based clinical teaching and simulation sessions. Scenarios cover core maternity nursing competencies and emergency situations, including:

Abdominal and vaginal examination procedures Partograph interpretation and expected date of delivery (EDD) calculation Edema grading and deep tendon reflex assessment Perineal, episiotomy, and nipple care Uterine massage and placenta examination Identification of obstetric instruments and emergency maternity interventions Each simulation session includes pre-briefing, active scenario management, and instructor-guided debriefing/reflection.

Outcome Measurement \& Instrumentation

Data collection occurs at baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention using three validated instruments:

Adapted Simulation Design and Student Satisfaction Scale (OB/GYN): A 44-item instrument utilizing a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree to 5 = Strongly Agree) to assess satisfaction with learning, self-confidence, simulation design quality, and educational practices.

Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE): A 20-station examination assessing clinical reasoning, interpretation, and decision-making skills. Each station is allocated 5 minutes and scored against standardized model answer keys (total score converted to a mean percentage).

Performance Checklists: Observational checklists using a 3-point rating scale (0 = \text{Not performed}, 1 = \text{Performed with assistance}, 2 = \text{Performed correctly}) to evaluate direct procedural accuracy during core maternity nursing skills.