Improving Collaboration Among Social Work and Nursing Students Through Interprofessional Simulation.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Education
• Interprofessional Practice
• Simulation-Based Learning

Background:

• Interprofessional collaboration is crucial for effective patient care.
• Healthcare students require practical experience in teamwork before entering the workforce.
• Simulation offers a safe environment to develop collaborative skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a patient simulation for nursing and social work students.
• To assess the impact of simulation on understanding interprofessional roles and team dynamics.
• To determine if simulation enhances preparedness for collaborative practice.

Main Methods:

• Nursing and social work students participated in a patient simulation.
• Students engaged in a contextual learning experience as part of a healthcare team.
• Reflection occurred through debriefing and open-ended comments.

Main Results:

• Participants gained a better understanding of other team members' scope of practice.
• Students reported increased comprehension of team dynamics.
• The simulation fostered skills for collaborative, interprofessional teamwork.

Conclusions:

• Simulation is an effective tool for teaching interprofessional collaboration to healthcare students.
• This learning experience improved students' insight into team dynamics and patient care.
• The project prepared students for functioning within collaborative healthcare teams.