Dynamic Plus-Delta: an agile debriefing approach centred around variable participant, faculty and contextual factors

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Healthcare Simulation
• Intensive Care Medicine

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic required rapid expansion of intensive care units (ICUs) and urgent training for healthcare staff.
• Simulation-based training became crucial for preparing staff for critical care environments.
• Existing debriefing models needed adaptation to meet the unique demands of mass, rapid training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the evolution and features of a novel debriefing model for simulation training.
• To address the challenges of training large numbers of healthcare staff rapidly in a dynamic ICU setting.
• To outline considerations for psychological safety within this training framework.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Dynamic Plus-Delta model, integrating traditional Plus-Delta with dynamic adjustments.
• Consideration of contextual factors: clinical demands, participant diversity, faculty experience, and time constraints.
• Focus on psychological safety within the debriefing process.

Main Results:

• The Dynamic Plus-Delta model offers a flexible and adaptive debriefing strategy.
• It effectively addresses the complexities of training diverse staff in high-demand, time-sensitive environments.
• Specific strategies for ensuring psychological safety were integrated.

Conclusions:

• The Dynamic Plus-Delta model provides a robust framework for simulation debriefing in rapid healthcare training.
• This approach is adaptable to similar settings requiring swift upskilling of personnel under varied conditions.
• Prioritizing psychological safety is essential for effective simulation-based learning in crisis situations.