Utilizing simulation to enhance critical thinking and situational awareness in BSN students

12^th Nursing and Healthcare Congress

October 03-05, 2016 Vancouver, Canada

Loretta J Aller

Kent State University, USA

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Nurs Care

Abstract :

This proposal describes a curriculum development and evaluation project utilizing simulation as the foundational teaching method. The author has developed a three (3) credit course entitled â�?�?Advanced Medical-Surgical Nursing Simulationâ�? which has moved from a pilot project to an actual course offering at Kent State University @ Stark. The course was designed to provide students with opportunities to practice, therefore supplementing the hand-on clinical experiences needed to develop critical thinking, decisionmaking, and situational awareness skills with the ultimate goal of ensuring safe patient care. As faculty, we recognize that we are not consistently able to provide every student with living examples and situations in the actual hospital/clinical setting. This course, using human simulators, begins with simple care, tasks and decision-making and progresses throughout the semester to include scenarios requiring advanced critical thinking and communication. By the end of the semester, students are responsible for the care of complex patients with multiple physiological health problems and/or multiple patient situations. The poster presentation would highlight background information regarding the development of the course, the potential impact for our nursing graduates preparing to step into the working roles needed in our community as well as student feedback and outcomes since the inception of the course. The author is currently developing related research proposals as part of her pursuit of a PhD in Nursing degree.

Biography :

Email: laller@kent.edu