Teaching Professional Peer Review With the Use of Simulation.

BACKGROUND: Quality improvement practices such as peer review and just culture are important components of patient safety initiatives, and health professions students should be introduced to these practices during their education. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a peer-review simulation learning experience using just culture principles in a graduate-level, online nursing education program. METHODS: The students rated their learning experience with high, positive scores in all 7 domains on the Simulation Learning Experience Inventory. Responses to the open-ended question indicated that the students thought the experience provided opportunities for deep learning, increased confidence, and enhanced critical thinking skills. CONCLUSION: A peer-review simulation program using just culture principles provided a meaningful learning experience for graduate-level students in an online nursing education program.

A Systematic Process for Evaluating Teaching Methods in Nursing Education.

BACKGROUND: An evidence-based process for the evaluation of teaching methods in nursing education, including classroom assignments, is not well described in the literature. PROBLEM: Nurse educators are familiar with evidence-based teaching but may be less knowledgeable about evidence-based methodologies to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching methods. Global measures of students' success, such as passing a licensing or certification examination, are often used as benchmarks for nursing education programs. APPROACH: The authors suggest an evidence-based, 8-step evaluation process for evaluating the effectiveness of teaching methods. This process is demonstrated using simulation learning experiences in 2 courses in an advanced practice nursing education program. OUTCOMES: The 8-step evaluation process was found to be effective for evaluating teaching methods within a graduate-level nursing education program. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed evaluation process is applicable for evaluating teaching methods at all levels of nursing education. This systematic evaluation of teaching methods may ensure that students are engaged in learning activities leading to the attainment of assignment and course objectives.

Oral Histories of Nurse-Midwives in Georgia, 1970-1989: Blazing Trails, Building Fences, Raising Towers.

INTRODUCTION: This article provides an account of the establishment and development of the contemporary nurse-midwifery profession in Georgia, which was previously undocumented. Oral history interviews with nurse-midwives who were in clinical and educational practice in Georgia during the 1970s and 1980s were collected and analyzed to identify factors that affected the establishment of nurse-midwifery in this state. METHODS: This study relied on historical methodology. Oral history interviews provided primary sources for analysis. Secondary sources included archives belonging to the narrators' nurse-midwifery services as well as scholarly and professional publications from 1923 to the present. Data were analyzed using Miller-Rosser and colleagues' method. RESULTS: In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 nurse-midwives who worked in clinical practice or education in Georgia in the 1970s and 1980s. The narrators' testimonies revealed facilitators for the establishment of nurse-midwifery in Georgia, including increasing access to care, providing woman-centered care, interprofessional relationships, and the support of peers. Resistance from the medical profession, financial constraints, and public misconceptions were identified as barriers for the profession. DISCUSSION: Oral histories in this study provided insight into the experiences of nurse-midwives in Georgia as they practiced and taught in the 1970s and 1980s. Interprofessional connections and cooperation supported the nurse-midwifery profession, and relationships with peers anchored the nurse-midwives. Mentoring relationships and interprofessional collaboration supported the nurse-midwives as they adapted and evolved to meet the needs of women in Georgia.