SIMULATION TRAINING SCENARIOS: THE CRITICAL ELEMENT IN A SUCCESSFUL SIMULATION BASED EXPERIENCE FOR TRAINING NURSING STUDENTS

This paper discusses the development of simulation training scenarios that is a critical element of a successful simulation based experience (SBE) in training nursing students. The steps in the development of the simulation training scenario are: 1) conduct needs assessment, 2) define measurable objectives, 3) develop simulation format, 4) develop clinical scenario, 5) identify simulation fidelity, 6) prepare facilitator guidelines, 7) develop briefing guidelines, 8) develop debriefing guidelines, 9) develop evaluation criteria, 10) develop participant guidelines, and 11) pilot test simulation training scenario. The College of Nursing at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has used the above steps in developing 130 simulation training scenarios. Simulation based experiences provide well-documented training simulation scenarios, repeatability of an exercise, consistency in training and standardization in the learning process. The College of Nursing has recently moved into a new building that includes a 10,600 sift Learning & Technology Resources Center. The Center houses a sixteen bed hospital laboratory, a four bed obstetric/pediatric laboratory and five high-fidelity simulation laboratories with facilitator control rooms, examination rooms, and student/faculty debriefing rooms. This paper describes the new Learning & Technology Resources Center, the steps in developing simulation training scenarios and the use of these scenarios combined with human patient simulators in the training of nursing students.