Biography
Biography: Neesha
Abstract
The education sector faces major challenges in providing learning experiences so that newly qualified nurses feel adequately prepared to work in a community setting. With this in mind, HEIs need to develop more innovative ways to deliver the community nurse experience to student nurses. Simulation provides an opportunity for educators to evaluate student performance in an environment that models a complete patient encounter. As senior lecturers, two being district nurses and one experienced in ward simulation, we came together proactively to enrich student learning and develop a highly realistic community learning environment in a non-conventional manner. We used each other’s skills and knowledge to challenge thoughts, reinforce thinking, prevent task orientated care and promote the use of efficient and effective communication as well as autonomy. Both quantitative and qualitative data was collected. Various questions were asked using a Likert scale and the answers were analysed by a group of senior lecturers to identify possible solutions for issues raised. Most changes occurred on the second day however they slowly continued throughout the week. This can be evidenced in the analysis of evaluation which represents a higher proportion of students giving a more positive rating towards the end of the simulation week.