Abstracts

Rationale: The EMU is a crucial resource in diagnosing and treating epilepsy. Ongoing education is an essential component to ensure patients’ safety, improving outcomes, and staff satisfaction. Education should be offered in a timely, convenient, and accessible format for all learners. Patient simulations provide an ideal education method for nurses as simulation provides hands on experience that allows the learner to make mistakes in a safe environment. Giving more confidence and improving outcomes. Patient simulation learning is also centered on the learner and requires self analysis. This form of deliberate practice has been demonstrated to be an effective form of learning. One study demonstrated improvement in leaner performance in subsequent simulations despite increasing complexity of the situations.Methods: Patient simulations were completed over three weeks in a pediatric epilepsy monitoring unit. These simulations were completed during day, night, and weekend shifts. Staff was notified of upcoming simulations via e-mail one week prior, but no notice was given in regards to timing to the simulations. All nurses completed pre testing evaluation as well as post testing to evaluate the efficacy of the teaching methods. Testing included six questions, on a Likert scale 1-5, to identify areas of need. Three different simulations were utilized demonstrating different seizure emergencies, seizure types, and clinical settings. Following each simulation the learners were debriefed and additional education was provided regarding the clinical scenario.Results: Prior to the intervention nurses reported that they felt least confident responding to an actively seizing patient and in identifying possible seizure activity, 3.4 average. They felt most confident maintaining a safe environment in the EMU, 3.9. Following the intervention nurses rated their confidence at responding to a seizing patient at 4.0. Overall confidence ratings increased in all measured fields. Secondary to the small sample size and unequal sample between pre and post testing a T-test was not completed. The table below demonstrates the individual assessment scores for each area tested.Conclusions: Overall nurses commented that the educational sessions were helpful and requested that further simulations be completed for additional learning opportunities. They felt more confident, and better prepared to answer to real emergencies and patients’ needs.