NURSE EDUCATOR EXPERIENCES OF VIRTUAL SIMULATION DEBRIEFING PRACTICES

Abstract

Simulation education provides unique experiential learning that enables nursing students to engage in clinical scenarios that replicate authentic clinical situations without causing harm to others or themselves. Simulation education has become a widely accepted and beneficial teaching modality in nursing curricula across Canada and globally. Virtual simulation was an essential part of nursing curricula before the pandemic. Even as the pandemic ends, the use of virtual simulation will continue to be integrated into nursing curricula as it offers an educational modality that supports students in meeting learning outcomes while accommodating the concern for the spread of infectious disease. Bound to the virtual simulation experience is instructor-led simulation debriefing, in which nurse educators guide students through critical reflection based on what happened during the simulation. However, research on nurse educators’ development and instructional strategies in virtual simulation debriefing is scarce. This study was grounded in interpretive phenomenology and utilized semi-structured interviews of seven participants to explore nurse educator experiences about virtual simulation online debriefing practices at a single post-secondary institution in Ontario. After inductive coding, the results showed that the four main themes that emerged from the data were, Demographics and Prerequisites of Virtual Simulation (VS) Debriefers, Improvement and Contribution to Best Practice, Experiences and Challenges of VS Debriefing, and Benefits and Opportunities of VS and Debriefing. The findings suggest the implementation of formative evaluation of debriefing practices can provide valuable insight for improved instructional design and innovative practice change that extend beyond nursing education.