Systematic review maps nurse educator challenges in nursing student attrition

A mixed-studies systematic review identified 37 studies concerning the challenges nurse educators face in supporting nursing students and minimising attrition. The synthesis produced two main themes: Nursing Education Context and Individual and Collective Nurse Educator and Student Dynamics, each containing sub-themes, categories and codes. The authors concluded that key influences on nursing education and educator–student dynamics require urgent attention.

The review was conducted in three major stages and eight steps using thematic synthesis. The researchers searched relevant Health and Medicine databases for primary studies published in any language with an English abstract and followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines. Studies focusing on nurse educator challenges and nursing student attrition were critically appraised with the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Thematic content analysis combined deductive and inductive reasoning; where included studies presented both nurse educators and students, the analysis used only data from educators. Of 1,330 initially identified studies, 37 met the inclusion criteria.

The abstract identifies persistent challenges in nursing education environments and highlights the importance of effective clinical and educational learning environments. Proposed responses include enhancing the nursing profession’s image, revising curricula and implementing student-focused teaching methods. It also calls for support for students during clinical placements, learning environments with adequate infrastructure, fair workload distribution and competitive remuneration to support educator motivation and retention. The authors additionally suggest that revised policies could improve continuous professional development and mentorship for new nurse educators. These are presented in the abstract as possible solutions rather than outcomes evaluated by the review.

South Africa provided the motivating context for the research. The abstract reports that problems in nursing training have contributed to a shortage of newly qualified nurses, while nursing education institutions accredited by the South African Nursing Council can register only limited numbers of students. Despite assistance from nurse educators, some students still fail to complete their training, and the authors suggest that educators may face challenges in addressing factors related to attrition. The findings are described as globally relevant, but the available evidence is limited to the abstract. It does not provide the geographic distribution, detailed characteristics or study-level quality findings for the 37 included studies, so the scope and limitations of the underlying evidence cannot be assessed further from the supplied material. The article is an early-access version in BMC Nursing and remains subject to further editorial changes.

Subject of Research: Nurse educator challenges associated with nursing student attrition in South African and global nursing education

Article Title: Challenges experienced by nurse educators to minimise the attrition of nursing students: a systematic review

Article References: Kent, A., Scholtz, S., Lubbe, W., & Rabie, T. (2026). Challenges experienced by nurse educators to minimise the attrition of nursing students: a systematic review. BMC Nursing. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-026-05455-5

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12912-026-05455-5

Keywords: nursing student attrition, nurse educators, systematic review, mixed-studies review, thematic synthesis, nursing education, clinical placements, South Africa, Challenges, experienced, nurse, educators