Effect of simulation-based emergency cardiac arrest education on nursing students' self-efficacy and critical thinking skills: Roleplay versus lecture.

BACKGROUND

Simulation education is a learning method for improving self-efficacy and critical thinking skills. However, not much study has been done on how to use it for education on emergency cardiac arrest situations, for which a multidisciplinary team approach is required.

OBJECTIVES

This study investigated the effects of simulation education on nursing students' self-efficacy and critical thinking skills in emergency cardiac arrest situations.

DESIGN

A quasi-experimental research approach with a crossover design was used to compare two types of simulation instruction methods.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

This study was conducted with 76 nursing students divided into two groups by order of instruction methods, in November and December 2016.

METHODS

Both groups of participants experienced a simulation lesson based on the same emergency scenario. Group A first completed a roleplay of an emergency cardiac arrest situation in a clinical setting, while Group B first listened to a lecture on the procedure. After ten days, Group A repeated the simulation exercise after listening to the lecture, while Group B completed the simulation exercise after the roleplay. The students' self-efficacy and critical thinking skills were measured using a questionnaire before and after each session.

RESULTS

In the first session, self-efficacy and critical thinking skills scores increased greatly from pretest to posttest for Group A in comparison to Group B; no statistically significant difference was found between the two groups. In the second session, Group B showed a significant increase between pretest and posttest, while Group A showed no significant difference.

CONCLUSIONS

Conducting the simulation exercise after the roleplay was a more effective teaching method than conducting it after the lecture. Moreover, having the nursing students assume various roles in realistic roleplay situations combined with simulation exercises led to a deeper understanding of clinical situations and improved their self-efficacy and critical thinking skills.