Creation of a virtual health system for leadership clinical experiences

Students had difficulty integrating leadership and outcomes management skills into their burgeoning novice practice. Further, the Baccalaureate Completion Program for RNs, an online program, expanded student enrollment, which created difficulty in finding enough clinical placements in agencies with staff experienced in leading teams and conducting performance improvement projects. The Leadership and Outcomes Management course was changed from a live clinical agency placement course to a virtual clinical agency experience. Students worked in teams on a virtual quality care delivery case within a virtual health care system. Students selected the case and where they worked within our full-service virtual health system. The virtual health system required interactions with staff, and faculty assumed several roles within the virtual health system as they guided the students through leadership skill development and the creation of a performance improvement system process. It also eliminated the need for live clinical agency placements.