New Graduate Nurses’ Perceptions of the Effects of Clinical Simulation on Their Critical Thinking, Learning, and Confidence

Abstract

Critical thinking has been a crucial outcome of nursing educational programs. Effective nurses should be knowledgeable about complex patient situations and confident in their skills. One teaching strategy recently adopted by some educators to develop nurses' critical thinking, learning, and confidence is simulation. Simulation incorporates scenarios and case studies developed to replicate real-life clinical situations. Learners are asked to solve clinical problems and make critical decisions based on the information provided. Little research has been done on how simulation experiences promote critical thinking, learning, and confidence, especially in new graduate nurses. This study explored the perceptions of new graduate nurses of how clinical simulation developed their critical thinking skills, learning, and confidence throughout their hospital clinical training. Ten new baccalaureate nursing graduates voluntarily participated in this study, which used an exploratory descriptive design. Data were collected by demographic questionnaires and semi-structured interviews and were analyzed using content analysis. Participants reported that simulation prepared them well to care confidently for critically ill patients. Simulation also helped them learn to make sound clinical decisions to improve patient outcomes. The findings have crucial implications for nursing education, practice, and research. They provide evidence to support the use of simulation as a teaching strategy to promote critical thinking skills, learning, and confidence. J Contin Educ Nurs 2010; 41(11): 506-516.