Undergraduate Nursing Students’ Experiences of Individualized Digital Reminiscence Using the InspireD App in Care Home Placements: Qualitative Focus Group Study

Background:
Care home placements offer important opportunities for student nurses to develop relational and person-centered approaches to dementia care. Digital reminiscence platforms are increasingly used to support the well-being of people living with dementia; however, little is known about how such platforms may shape student learning within practice settings. There is limited qualitative evidence examining how digital reminiscence is experienced by students and how it influences their understanding of personhood, relationships, and care practices.

Objective:
The aim of the study is to explore undergraduate nursing students’ experiences of engaging with individualized digital reminiscence using the InspireD reminiscence app during care home placements.

Methods:
Following a pilot implementation of the intervention, a qualitative exploratory study was conducted, in which 13 undergraduate nursing students participated in 4 focus groups. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Results:
Three themes were developed to capture how participants made sense of their learning and practice experiences when engaging with individual reminiscence using the InspireD reminiscence app. The first theme, “deepening empathy and understanding through reminiscence,” describes how participants developed a greater appreciation of residents’ life histories and personhood. The second theme, “learning through connection,” reflects how relationships with residents and families shaped communication, confidence, and emotional engagement. The third theme, “growing as person-centered practitioners within the realities of care home practice,” highlights how participants reflected on translating this learning into practice while navigating organizational constraints and everyday care demands.

Conclusions:
Findings suggest that the InspireD reminiscence app can support the development of person-centered learning within care home placements, although successful implementation is contingent on supportive organizational cultures. These findings contribute to wider discussions in health professions education by illustrating how digital platforms can mediate experiential learning in practice settings and support the preparation of future health professionals to use digital tools in relational and values-based ways. Future research should examine longer-term learning outcomes and implementation across diverse placement contexts.