The Meta-Debrief Club (MDC) is a new and innovative approach designed to enhance the quality and effectiveness of debriefing practices in healthcare simulation. This article by Erin Carn-Bennett, RN, MSN will discuss key insights from two pivotal publications: The Meta-Debrief Club: an effective method for debriefing your debrief and The Meta-Debrief Club: An embedded model for ongoing faculty development and quality assurance which are referenced at the end of this article.MDC is an incredible and hopeful resource for clinical simulation debriefers across the globe who seek to professionally develop in the skillset of debriefing.
The Origins and Development of the Meta-Debrief Club
The MDC originated from a group of novice debriefers who met regularly to critically review and analyse recordings of their clinical simulation debriefing sessions. This group collaborative work initially led to the foundation of and a standardized format for this process. MDC is founded in educational theories such as deliberate practice and experiential learning. The core belief was that principles applied to clinical simulation participants are equally relevant to faculty development in regards specifically to debrief skills.
With time, the MDC evolved into a regular forum where healthcare simulation debriefers from many clinical backgrounds could engage in a reflective practice and receive constructive feedback through a structured approach and also with prompts such as prompt cards. Within this psychologically safe environment which is MDC this allowed clinical simulation faculty to be able to implement deliberate refinements to their debriefing techniques in healthcare simulation experiences.
Session Structure and Methodology
MDC sessions aim to meet variably dependent on the program and area from either weekly up to monthly for two hours and are able to accommodate up to ten participants. With expansion, there are current reviews in place to look into structures that include less of a time frame and the ability to accommodate many more people at each session. MDC sessions encouraged participants to sign up electronically. Each MDC session begins with the role allocations of both a chairperson and a scribe. The chairperson role facilitates the discussion and the scribe role documents key points and actionable takeaways for clinical simulation facilitator participants.
The healthcare simulation debriefer participants in MDC provides background context about the clinical simulation scenario and the participant group. From there the MDC group reviews the recorded debriefing of the clinical simulation experience with the use of a “pause and play” approach.This MDC method allows healthcare simulation facilitator participants to be able to interject with comments, questions, or suggestions.
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This process fosters an educational environment of open dialogue and mutual learning. The primary goal of MDC is to generate actionable “take-home messages” for the debriefer participants and the promotion of continuous improvement for debriefing practices. An important part of MDC is that the footage is ideally filmed with the camera on the debriefer who seeks the MDC feedback and that consent for use in MDC is sought from the healthcare simulation participants to film both at the start and completion of the debrief.
Adaptations and Innovations
When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, there were significant adaptations required so that the MDC model could continue. The transition from in-person MDC to virtual sessions did have challenges in order to maintain psychological safety and also utilize paper-based tools. To be able to address these challenges, the MDC group moved to a digital platform which enabled the creation of a supportive virtual environment.
The shift for MDC to a virtual platform was able to ensure the continuity of the MDC and also expanded the MDC reach. This allowed clinical simulation faculty from a number of hospitals and health boards to be able to participate. This was able to facilitate MDC to become embedded in faculty development processes, which has enhanced MDC impact and sustainability.
Integration into Faculty Development Programs
The MDC format has been integrated into faculty development programs, both locally and internationally. In NHS Lothian, MDC has become a part of the faculty development framework. This provides both support and quality assurance for healthcare simulation debriefing practices. The MDC model has also been adopted by the University of Canberra in Australia and has launched as an embedded program at the Association for Simulated Practice in Healthcare (ASPIH) in 2024. These integrations highlight the adaptability and effectiveness of the MDC model in various clinical simulation based educational contexts and demonstrates the value in promotion of continuous professional development among clinical simulation educators.
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Outcomes and Future Directions
The MDC has shown a significant ability to benefit in enhancement of debriefing proficiency. This is achieved to foster the culture of reflective practices among healthcare simulation educators. MDC participants have reported improved confidence and competence in their debriefing skills and this has contributed to higher-quality clinical simulation-based education. In the future, further scholarly inquiry is needed to explore the long-term impacts of the MDC on educational outcomes for healthcare simulation educators and also their participants.
This enquiry process of MDC will assist to identify best practices for further implementation across more diverse educational environments. Continued evaluation and adaptation of MDC will ensure that the MDC remains responsive to the needs of healthcare simulation educators. The future of MDC is a hopeful and bright spot for clinical simulation faculty members as they professionally develop and seek to receive the feedback that many healthcare simulation debriefers often crave.
The Meta-Debrief Club is representative of a pioneered approach to healthcare simulation faculty development in the clinical simulation environment. Through the provision of the structured MDC platform for reflective practice and peer feedback, MDC enhances the quality of debriefing. This ultimately improves educational outcomes in clinical simulation-based education. The MDC successful integration into various faculty development programs underscores the potential as a model for professional development and quality assurance in healthcare education. Read more:
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References:
- Oliver, N., & Mellanby, E. ( 2024). The Meta-Debrief Club: An embedded model for ongoing faculty development and quality assuranceInternational Journal of Healthcare Simulation. from 10.54531/ixiz4714.
- O’Shea CI, Schnieke-Kind C, Pugh D, Picton E. The Meta-Debrief Club: an effective method for debriefing your debrief. BMJ Simul Technol Enhanc Learn. 2020 Mar 2;6(2):118-120. doi: 10.1136/bmjstel-2018-000419. PMID: 35516078; PMCID: PMC8948357.
