ABSTRACT
During the coronavirus pandemic, UK Academics were required to adjust their learning and teaching environment and pedagogical approaches, with little guidance or time. Feelings of frustration and uncertainty around student engagement were commonplace across Higher Education Institutions. This was heightened in professionally regulated courses, such as nursing. The shift to online learning created a situation where academics were frequently faced with a 'sea of black screens' and unable to ascertain student engagement. This study investigated undergraduate nursing students' experience of online education during the COVID-19 pandemic. An anonymous survey was distributed to each year of the undergraduate nursing programme and data subsequently analysed. Responses from 54 students revealed that engagement varied between different year groups. There were significant differences between those with pre-COVID (traditional face-to-face) teaching experience (years 2 and 3) and those without (year 1) in regard to self-reported engagement with online learning. The findings from this study revealed some powerful and emotional insights into the experience of online learning amongst UK students undertaking an undergraduate nursing programme during the COVID-19 pandemic.
ABSTRACT
Background There is growing interest in utilizing structured extended periods of simulation as partial replacement for clinical placement (PRCP) due to workforce demands and COVID-19 impact. This project aimed to identify the extent to which stakeholders felt that simulated placements could reduce overall clinical placement time requirement for health care students. Method Participants included a range of nurses and Allied Health Professionals including managers, clinicians and lecturers. A three-round Delphi study was conducted with a 75% consensus agreement target. Results Overall, 71 participants engaged with at least one round of the study and identified benefits of PRCP: Safety, learning from mistakes, improved preparation, and reduced placement training burden. Challenges included poor realism, logistics, time, and access to facilities. Conclusions The consensus opinion indicated that between 11% and 30% of clinical training time could be replaced with simulated placement. Ongoing work will need to identify profession-specific consensus opinion and guidance on the use of simulation as PRCP. Cite this article: Bridge, P., et al. (Year, Month). Simulated placements as partial replacement of clinical training time: a Delphi consensus study. Clinical Simulation in Nursing, vol(no.), eXXX-eXXX. doi: 10.1016/j.ecsn.20XX.