Leading Change in Health Education: Assessing Organisational Readiness to Implement Simulation in Multidisciplinary...

Simulation-based education (SBE) is recognised as a highly effective approach for preparing healthcare students for clinical practice. However, its consistent integration and long-term sustainability remain challenging, often due to insufficient resources, limited faculty capability and the absence of robust educational frameworks. Organisational readiness, which is an important yet under-examined determinant of SBE success, plays a critical role in overcoming these barriers, particularly in multidisciplinary and multi-campus contexts.

This study aimed to evaluate an organisation's readiness to implement SBE programmes across diverse health disciplines by applying the Simulation Culture Organisational Readiness Survey (SCORS).

The SCORS tool, comprising four subscales and 38 Likert-scale items, measures readiness for change, availability of resources and capacity for sustainable development. A cross-sectional survey was conducted via Qualtrics XM, supplemented with demographic data to account for participants' disciplinary backgrounds.

A total of 43 staff completed the survey, with the largest representation from Nursing (46%) and Physiotherapy (14%). The highest mean score was observed in Section A-Need and Support for Change (3.04), indicating a strong perceived value for SBE. Conversely, Section C-Time, Personnel and Resource Readiness-recorded the lowest mean score (2.31), signalling significant operational challenges. The overall readiness score of 103.86 placed the organisation as 'somewhat ready' for SBE integration, with administrators identified as key influencers in the adoption process.

Findings highlight the need for a centralised, strategically governed SBE framework supported by sufficient resourcing, embedded leadership and faculty development. Clear reporting structures, coordinated resource allocation and a service-oriented operational model are recommended to ensure interdisciplinary collaboration and sustainability across campuses. These findings have direct implications for nursing management, particularly for nurse education leaders, nursing simulation programme managers and academic nursing managers responsible for aligning simulation governance, faculty workload allocation, capability development and curriculum integration within nursing and wider health programmes.

Achieving sustainable SBE integration requires a whole-of-organisation approach that aligns governance, pedagogy and operational capacity, ensuring that simulation becomes a core, enduring component of health professional education.