Developing Clinical Judgment During Transition to Practice With Rapid-Cycle Deliberate Practice Simulation.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Patient Safety
• Quality Improvement

Background:

• New-to-practice nurses (NPNs) exhibit higher error rates and attrition compared to experienced nurses, impacting patient safety.
• A gap exists between nursing education and clinical practice, affecting NPNs' readiness.
• Simulation-based education is a potential strategy to enhance NPNs' clinical judgment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a multipatient simulation using rapid-cycle deliberate practice (RCDP) for NPNs.
• To improve NPNs' clinical judgment, decision-making, and communication skills.
• To assess the impact of simulation on NPNs' confidence and psychological safety.

Main Methods:

• A quality improvement project was implemented by an intradisciplinary team.
• A multipatient simulation incorporating RCDP was utilized.
• Pre- and postsimulation surveys using the simulation effectiveness tool-modified were administered to assess outcomes.

Main Results:

• Twenty-four NPNs participated in the pilot simulation.
• Self-reported improvements were observed in clinical judgment and communication skills post-simulation.
• Other nursing competencies also showed self-reported gains.

Conclusions:

• RCDP simulation may effectively support the development of essential nursing competencies in NPNs.
• Simulation-based training can increase NPNs' confidence and psychological safety.
• This approach holds promise for improving NPN performance and retention.