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Nursing Students' Transfer of Learning During a Disaster Tabletop Exercise
Cathleen A Evans1, Mary Baumberger-Henry, Rose Schwartz
1Author Affiliations: Assistant Professor (Dr Evans), Professor (Dr Baumberger-Henry), Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Associate Professor (Dr Schwartz), School of Nursing, Widener University, Chester, Pennsylvania; Associate Professor (Dr Veenema), School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
Nurse Educator
|September 11, 2018
Summary
Nursing students successfully applied medical-surgical knowledge during a disaster simulation. This tabletop exercise demonstrated effective transfer of learning for critical decision-making skills.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Disaster Preparedness
- Medical-Surgical Nursing
Background:
- Effective disaster response hinges on nurses' decision-making capabilities.
- Tabletop exercises are valuable classroom tools for simulating disaster scenarios and problem-solving.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the transfer of learning from medical-surgical coursework to nursing students' decisions during a disaster tabletop exercise.
- To assess students' perceptions of applying prior knowledge in a simulated disaster event.
Main Methods:
- Utilized researcher-designed instruments and a disaster scenario tabletop exercise.
- Measured the transfer of basic medical-surgical concepts to student decisions during the exercise.
- Assessed prelicensure nursing students' learning and attitudes.
Main Results:
- Students achieved notable scores in infection control (17.61), bleeding management (14.93), pain assessment (11.17), and electrolyte balance (13.73).
- Disaster knowledge scores averaged 19.46, with attitude scores at 51.41.
- The results indicate a positive transfer of learning in the simulated disaster context.
Conclusions:
- Nursing students demonstrated the ability to transfer foundational medical-surgical knowledge during a disaster tabletop exercise.
- The findings support the efficacy of tabletop exercises in nursing education for disaster preparedness.