Using Interprofessional Simulation with Telehealth to Enhance Teamwork and Communication in Home Care.

Interpersonal communication and teamwork are critical to patient safety. There is evidence supporting the effectiveness of formalized team training strategies such as simulation-based learning experiences to permit opportunities for deliberate practice and skill acquisition. However, there is a paucity of evidence examining the best method for delivery of simulation-based interprofessional education activities (Sim-IPE). The purpose of this project was to explore the effectiveness of using a Sim-IPE with a home-based patient assessment and intervention for students in undergraduate nursing, nurse practitioner, and physical therapy programs with the goal of enhancing interprofessional team communication and team performance. A mixed-methods, observational research design was used to evaluate teamwork and communication following virtual/web-based deliberate practice and a subsequent face-to-face Sim-IPE with telehealth. There were two distinct stages: (1) provision of interprofessional education elements of teamwork and communication via a virtual web-based platform to interprofessional student teams; (2) participation of all 29 student teams in a Sim-IPE activity using a standardized patient in a simulated home-based setting. Teams scored very high on an interprofessional communication and teamwork scale, and students strongly agreed that the prebriefing, scenario, and debriefing assisted in their learning. Students also valued exposure to telehealth and the ability to work with students from other health professions.

Responding to COVID-19: Developing a Virtual "On-Campus" Experience for Adult-Geriatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Students.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic prevented in-person activities at colleges and universities in the spring/summer 2020 semester. Therefore, adult-geriatric acute care nurse practitioner students were unable to have on-campus clinical experiences. METHOD: An innovative virtual experience was developed, using synchronous platforms for lectures and a virtual patient (VP) encounter. RESULTS: Eight students participated in the experience, composed of three interactive lectures and a VP encounter. Students spent an average of 24.88 minutes (range = 20.88 to 35.48) with the VP, followed by debriefing. Students who became frustrated with the technology were identified as those who did not perform the practice session within the virtual platform. CONCLUSION: Faculty determined that the virtual experience was a success. They were able to evaluate students' critical thinking and clinical decision-making. Next steps include refinement of the avatar platform as well as forcing completion of a practice session prior to the actual synchronous graded activity. [J Nurs Educ. 2021;60(10):586-589.].

Report and Prevent: A Quality Improvement Project to Protect Nurses From Violence in the Emergency Department.

INTRODUCTION: Most nurses experience some form of workplace violence resulting in a stressful work environment, employee injury, and turnover. The aims of this project were to develop and evaluate strategies to improve the reporting of workplace violence as well as to empower emergency nurses to prevent assaults and protect themselves. METHODS: This quality improvement project had 2 phases. The phase I educational intervention focused on the importance of reporting workplace violence. Pre- and postintervention surveys measured experiences with workplace violence and reporting. The phase II educational intervention focused on de-escalation and self-protection strategies, training, safety, confidence, and emergency nurses' preparedness to defend themselves. Responses were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed-rank and McNemar tests. RESULTS: Twenty-five emergency nurses participated in phase I, with >90% reporting that they had been assaulted in the past month. Most did not report a workplace assault, which was unchanged after the intervention. Thirty-four emergency nurses participated in phase II, with a postintervention increase reported in the perceived helpfulness of learning self-protection techniques for the emergency nurses' work life (Z = -2.179, P = 0.029). DISCUSSION: This study was consistent with the literature in that emergency nurses often do not report workplace assaults. Most of the emergency nurses surveyed had been assaulted. Although the educational interventions did not achieve the desired outcome, it is clear that additional interventions for individual nurses and institutions need to be developed and refined to increase reporting and prevent workplace assaults.

Autopsy Observation as Experiential Learning for Nurse Practitioner Students in an Online Advanced Pathophysiology Course.

BACKGROUND: Many instructional classrooms now exist in the online environment, where it is difficult to integrate experiential teaching strategies. Autopsy-based education has been shown to be a valuable teaching tool for pathophysiology in a medical school curriculum. PROBLEM: There is a gap in the literature about the use of an autopsy observation in nurse practitioner (NP) education. APPROACH: The purpose of this project was to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of an autopsy experience for NP students in an online advanced pathophysiology course. OUTCOMES: Based on a review of course evaluations and reflective essays, the majority of students found this to be a valuable learning experience. The main barrier was locating a facility and scheduling the autopsy observation. CONCLUSION: The benefits outweigh the barriers to providing experiential learning with an autopsy observation in an online pathophysiology course. As such, it should be considered in similar course offerings.

Using Simulation to Evaluate Clinical Performance and Reasoning in Adult-Geriatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Students.

BACKGROUND: The use of simulation-based learning experiences (SBLE) with nurse practitioner (NP) students is largely unexplored. The purpose of this pilot project was to develop, implement, and evaluate a simulated patient (SP)-SBLE to improve confidence and evaluate clinical performance and reasoning in Adult-Geriatric Acute Care NP (AG-ACNP) students. METHOD: A mixed-methods design was used to evaluate an SP-SBLE on AG-ACNP student clinical performance and reasoning. RESULTS: Self-confidence scores and themes from reflections indicated that students perceived this as a valuable experience that enhanced learning and confidence. CONCLUSION: Results supported the use of SP-SBLEs to improve confidence in clinical performance and reasoning with AG-ACNP students. [J Nurs Educ. 2019;58(10):599-603.].