The field of healthcare simulation has made tremendous strides forward over the past several decades. One way this revolution is made possible is through clinical simulation research being conducted across the globe. The journal Clinical Simulation in Nursing is constantly sharing updates that include article research reviews, more information on standards of best practice, research briefs, and overall innovations in medical simulation. This HealthySimulation.com article by Content Manager Teresa Gore, PhD, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, CHSE-A, FSSH, FAAN provides an overview of the latest clinical simulation highlights as of November 2023 and explains how these updates impact the healthcare simulation community overall.
Nurturing Clinical Decision-Making Through Simulation: Highlighting the Value of the Human Experience Amidst the Rise of Technology : This special issue of Clinical Simulation in Nursing prompts us to contemplate the clinical decision-making education for nurses and other health care professionals. Simulation remains a powerful ally in developing clinical decision-making with its ability to foster experiential learning and provide a platform for reflection and refinement. It has long been one of the preferred strategies for nurses and nursing students to immerse themselves in authentic care scenarios, refine their decision-making skills, and witness the consequences of their choices. The ability to recreate real-life situations within a safe learning environment has made simulation an invaluable tool for learners to engage in the complete cycle of clinical decision-making and judgment, which encompasses health assessment, cue recognition and interpretation, generation, and prioritization of solutions, and evaluation of outcomes.
Video-Based Simulation Among Saudi Undergraduate Nursing Students During COVID-19: A Qualitative Study : Because of university closures due to COVID-19 confinement, video-based simulation, a training technique based on high-fidelity simulations, was introduced in reaction to the need to adapt high-fidelity clinical simulation experiences to digital platforms. This study aims to evaluate the perceptions of nursing students in Saudi Arabia regarding the shift from face-to-face simulation experiences to video-based simulation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This study employed a phenomenological exploratory qualitative research design among 32 nursing students from various academic levels. The thematic analysis gave rise to five themes, namely, “Enhanced Learning and satisfaction”, “Improved communication skills”, “Lack of hands-on experience”, “More comfortable experience”, and “Technical Barriers”. The students in this study have indicated that they were satisfied with video-based simulation, where they reported enhanced learning, better communication skills, and more perceived comfort, while concerns regarding technical issues and nursing skills were raised.
Person-Centered Care and Clinical Judgment: Mapping the AACN Essentials with Simulation in Prelicensure Nursing Programs : The purpose of this article is to describe simulation as a strategy for teaching and mapping the AACN Essentials domain of Person-Centered Care and the concept of clinical judgment with prelicensure nursing students. A validated assessment tool, the Lasater clinical judgment Rubric, may be used to evaluate the AACN concept of clinical judgment with simulation.
A variety of high-fidelity simulation scenarios, standardized clients, and embedded participants increase realism and student learning. Encompassing a variety of clients across the lifespan while incorporating cultural diversity in each scenario offers an opportunity to teach the AACN domain of Person-Centered Care. Evaluating student performance progressively in interactive simulation activities aims to prepare practice-ready nurses.
Fostering Clinical Decision-Making Using Screen-Based Simulations Aligned with the NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model : New graduate nurses are expected to have the clinical decision-making (CDM) skills necessary to safely care for multiple patients with complex, competing needs. Limited opportunities to care for multiple patients in the clinical setting hinders the development of students’ CDM and clinical judgment abilities. This study aimed to ascertain the impact of commercially designed screen-based simulations (SBS) on students’ performance across CDM elements of the National Council for State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) Clinical Judgment Measurement Model (CJMM). This purposive sample included 68 students enrolled in an adult medical-surgical course. A quasi-experimental posttest design was implemented by integrating two prioritization of care SBS across a semester (weeks four and nine) as part of required clinical hours.
The results showed an increase in intervention selection (p = .001) and intervention prioritization (p = .012) in less time (p = < .001) were noted with a small to medium effect size. Decreases in the level of care selection (p = .063) and patient prioritization (p = .001) were noted with a small to medium effect size. Trends were noted in overall score increases with a small effect size (p = .096). The study outcomes suggest that prelicensure nursing students need repetitive practice in multiple-patient triage and prioritization of care opportunities. Prelicensure coursework and direct care clinical experiences can be supplemented with targeted SBS to facilitate the development of all foundational components of CDM to help bridge the knowledge-to-practice gap.
Usability of a Virtual Reality Application to Educate Family Caregivers of Children With Asthma : Virtual reality (VR) is being used to educate health professions students. However, little is known about the use of VR in the context of providing education to caregivers. After the initial development of a VR prototype, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the usability and user experience of the Asthma Academy App – an app designed to educate caregivers on how to manage a child’s asthma attack. Thirty-eight doctor of nursing practice students participated in the alpha-testing. This study used a quantitative, descriptive design employing the System Usability Scale and several open-ended questions. The mean score on the SUS was 80.33 (SD 12.97), indicating high usability. The Asthma Academy App© prototype was perceived as easy to use, interactive, and user-friendly. Virtual Reality may be an innovative way to advance family caregiver education efforts related to asthma management.
The Clinical Simulation in Nursing journal has an impact factor of 2.6 for 2022 and 2.9 for a 5-year impact factor. Clinical simulation should be designed, developed, implemented, and evaluated based on the latest research and evidence-based practices that are supported by the Healthcare Simulation Standards of Best Practice. Whether someone is new to healthcare simulation and is looking to understand the fundamentals or is experienced and seeking the latest updates and research, INACSL can provide them with the support they need.
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