Peer teaching and learning in clinical education

Informal and incidental use of peer education is common practice, but it has lacked definition in its implementation. Considerable literature is in existence. However, there is a lack of quality evidence on the application and effectiveness of this educational intervention.The purpose of this review has been to increase the theoretical body of knowledge, which informs this educational practice. Method- A search was conducted of health science and educational electronic databases using the terms peer, clinical education and undergraduate. The set limitations of the search were publication after 1980, English language and research paper. From this twelve articles met the inclusion criteria. Due to considerable heterogeniety in the education approaches and research designs of the included studies. The results have been collated into a narrative summary. Outcomes- This review demonstrated mostly positive outcomes on the effectiveness of peer teaching and learning in clinical practice but it also identifies some negative aspects.