Readiness and Acceptance of Nursing Students Regarding AI-Based Health Care Technology on the Training of Nursing Skills in Saudi Arabia: Cross-Sectional Study

Background: The rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies across various sectors, including health care, necessitate the need for a comprehensive understanding of their applications. Specifically, the acceptance and readiness of nursing students as future health care professionals to adopt AI-based health care technologies, along with the factors influencing these attitudes, are critical for facilitating the effective integration of AI in health care settings. Objective: This study aimed to assess the readiness and acceptance of nursing students regarding the use of AI-based health care technologies in the nursing skills training in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional research design was used. A convenience sampling technique was applied to recruit 322 participants. Data were collected between June and September 2023 using a self-administered questionnaire that included the technology readiness index (TRI) and the technology acceptance scale. Results: Approximately 92.2% (297/322) of participants exhibited positive attitudes toward AI, and 74.8% (241/322) demonstrated innovativeness, indicating a generally favorable perception of AI. However, more than half of the students (59% [190/322] and 59.3% [191/322], respectively) reported feelings of discomfort and negative perceptions regarding AI use. Regarding TRI, 69.6% (224/322) of participants showed moderate readiness, while 30.4% (98/322) exhibited a high level of TRI. A substantial majority (320/322 99.4%) expressed acceptance of AI-based technologies in their training, with only 0.6% (2/322) reporting nonacceptance. Older students (aged >22 y) exhibited significantly higher levels of AI acceptance and readiness compared to younger students (P<.001). In addition, female students demonstrated significantly greater readiness and acceptance levels than male students (P=.003). Further, third-level students reported the highest mean scores in both acceptance and readiness (66.77 and 16.69, respectively; P=.002), while first-level students had the lowest (60.59 and 15.15). Among course groups, students enrolled in Maternal and Child Health Nursing reported the highest mean scores (65.19 and 16.30), whereas those in Community Health Nursing reported the lowest (57.50 and 14.38; P<.001). Conclusions: The findings indicate that nursing students demonstrated a generally positive level of readiness and acceptance toward the use of AI and related technologies in education and training. However, these levels remained moderate overall, highlighting the need to enhance awareness and deepen students' understanding of AI's potential to improve training effectiveness and health care quality.