Guidelines for clinical facilitators to support student nurses in a simulation laboratory at a college of nursing in the Western Cape
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Date
2013
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Western Cape
Abstract
The main benefit of simulation in nursing education is the ability to teach clinical skills in a
non-threatening, safe environment where mistakes can be rectified without harm to any
patient. Therefore, it is clinical facilitators who must display the knowledge and skills to
impart to the student nurses during their 4-year programme of study. It is unclear how student
nurses at a local nursing college view teaching and learning processes in the simulation
laboratory. The purpose of this study is to explore student nurses‟ views of teaching and
learning in a simulation laboratory with the purpose of describing guidelines for clinical
facilitators to support student nurses in a simulation laboratory at a local College of Nursing
in the Western Cape.
A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design was used in order to explore and
describe the views of student nurses about teaching and learning in the simulation laboratory.
The ECP (Extended Curriculum Programme), 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th year students (N = 880), who
were registered in the R425 programme at the College of Nursing in the Western Cape, had
been identified as the accessible student population of this study. A purposive opportunistic
sampling population was applied. Two focus groups (20 participants) per year of study were
conducted. The size of each focus group was at least 10 participants. The focus group
interviews lasted around 60 minutes per group. Data gathering was conducted by the
researcher who initiated, prompted, and facilitated these focus groups. For the purpose of data
triangulation, voice recordings of the interviews were supported by the taking of field notes.
Open coding had been used for data analysis. The credibility of the coding was checked and
confirmed by an independent coder.
Trustworthiness was maintained, since credibility was ensured by means of prolonged
engagement in the field until data saturation occurred, referential adequacy, and member
checks that followed. Dependability was ensured by establishing an audit trail. Ethical
considerations were ensured by obtaining written, informed consent from participants of the
study, as well as for the voice recording of the discussions. Participants could withdraw at any
stage of the study. Confidentiality was explained and the researcher requested that
participants do not share the information after the group discussions. In this study, student nurses experienced both opportunities and challenges with the teaching
and learning in the simulation laboratory. Furthermore, the contextual demands between the
first and subsequent years of study seemed to play an essential part in their experience.
Description
Magister Curationis - MCur
Keywords
Views, Student nurse, Learning needs, Simulation Laboratory, Adult learning, Teaching, Nursing education, Guidelines, Clinical nurse facilitator