"Won't You Be My Patient?": Preparing Theater Students as Standardized Patients.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Simulation in nursing education is a well-supported teaching strategy. High-fidelity manikins provide students with an opportunity to practice nursing care in a safe environment. Yet, limitations such as lack of realism and inability to practice therapeutic communication have been reported. However, standardized patients (SPs)--actors trained to portray patients with medical issues--provide students with realistic patient situations and opportunities to develop essential skills. METHOD: A literature review identified barriers to utilizing SP-based simulations. Issues such as financial, human resource, and quality control concerns were identified. RESULTS: Based on identified barriers, an innovative, interdisciplinary course to prepare theater students to portray patients for simulations is proposed. This proposed course could potentially eliminate identified barriers and increase use of SPs. CONCLUSION: Because this is a proposed course, the authors recommend testing of the innovation to determine the effectiveness for both nursing and theater students.