Undergraduate Nursing Students’ Experience in Patient-safety Education and Its Association with Patient-safety Competency: An Exploratory Study

Purpose: This study aimed to explore undergraduate nursing students’ experiences with patient-safety education in South Korea and examine its association with patient safety competency.Methods: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional online survey in November 2024 among 200 junior and senior nursing students from 50 colleges. Participants reported how patient-safety education was delivered at their college and in their own coursework (a stand-alone course in patient safety vs. content embedded within other courses). Coverage of the 11 World Health Organization (WHO) patient safety curriculum topics was enumerated. Group comparisons and multivariate linear regression were used to test the associations between instructional format and overall patient-safety competency adjusting for student characteristics.Results: Students (82.0%) completed patient safety education embedded within other courses rather than a standalone patient safety course (18.0%). Students who completed a stand-alone course reported broader topic coverage (M=8.19, SD=2.93 vs M=4.09, SD=3.54; t=7.33, <i>p</i><.001) and higher overall patient safety competency (M=4.03, SD=0.55 vs. M=3.73, SD=0.62; t=2.75, <i>p</i>=.007). In adjusted analyses, completion of a stand-alone patient safety course was positively associated with higher overall competency (<i>β</i>=.15, <i>p</i>=.036).Conclusion: Delivering a stand-alone course in patient safety is associated with broader coverage of WHO topics and higher patient safety competency among undergraduate nursing students. We should consider standardized curricula and faculty-development efforts to provide comprehensive, system-based, and team-based patient safety education in Korean undergraduate nursing programs.