Preparedness for safe and competent medication management: Final-year nursing students’ retrospective perceptions of learning across academic and clinical contexts

Background Safe, competent medication management is essential for patient safety, yet final-year nursing students often feel underprepared. How nursing students experience learning in medication management across academic and clinical contexts remains underexplored. Aim To explore final-year nursing students’ retrospective perceptions of how learning experiences across academic and clinical contexts contributed to their perceived preparedness for safe and competent medication management. Method A qualitative descriptive study using focus groups with 23 final-year nursing students. Data were analysed utilising systematic text condensation. Results Three categories were identified: struggling to see the goal and a need for structured academic support; at the mercy of clinical practice: role ambiguity and inconsistent expectations; and navigating uncertainty and developing strategies for safe medication management. Conclusion Competence gaps were attributed to learning constraints in academic and clinical contexts, and students found it challenging to adopt effective learning strategies and make use of available learning opportunities. Future research should examine how self-regulated learning interventions can impact medication-management outcomes and how strengthened academic–clinical alignment can support more consistent learning and assessment.