Abstract:
With increasing strains on hospital systems, Critical Care Units (CCUs) have grappled with nursing resource limitations. To address this issue, the Critical Care New Graduate Nurse Residency Program (NGNRP) at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) was developed as a recruitment and retention strategy, allowing new graduate nurses to enter an orientation stream that provides graduated entry into Critical Care from inpatient units over 1-year. The NGNRP partnered with SimKIDS Simulation Program to develop simulation-based education (SBE) focused on mentorship and socialization to facilitate nurses’ transition.
Three cohorts (12 nurses) participated in SBE sessions between January and August 2023. Prior to the SBE, nurses engaged in pre-learning didactic and case-based sessions intended to scaffold their learning. The simulations took place over two days and embedded mentoring by a range of interprofessional providers: Respiratory Therapists, Clinical Support Nurses, and Physicians, who offered clinical support and served as role models to nurture skill development.
To evaluate the SBE, data were collected using surveys administered before and after the simulations, including the Inter-professional Socialization and Valuing Scale (ISVS) and perceived self-efficacy, measured using a scale based on Bandura’s Framework. As measured by ISVS, learners exhibited significant improvements post-simulation in their perceived abilities to share and exchange ideas within the team, speak up, understand others’ roles, engage in interprofessional practice, and accept delegated responsibilities (p<0.05). Nurses’ self-efficacy ratings also improved significantly in recognizing patient condition changes, speaking up in team settings, knowing when to seek additional help, prioritizing and delegating tasks, managing deteriorating respiratory conditions, and employing closed-loop communication (p<0.05).
Our results highlight the positive impact of SBE through nursing simulation, in preparing new graduate nurses for the challenges of Critical Care, specifically enhancing socialization, communication, and collaborative skills within interprofessional teams.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will be able to explain the role and benefits of simulation in enhancing socialization, mentorship, and clinical skills for new graduate nurses transitioning into a critical care setting.
- Participants will describe how a scaffolded simulation-based education program can support transitioning from an inpatient clinical setting to critical care.
- Highlight the positive impact of SBE in preparing new graduate nurses for the challenges of Critical Care, specifically enhancing socialization, communication, and collaborative skills within interprofessional teams.
