Nurse faculty experiences with integrating high-fidelity simulation (HFS) into their teaching practice: A phenomenological study

Abstract

High-fidelity simulation (HFS) is a teaching innovation that is becoming a key component in nursing education programs. Nursing students are able to practice skills without fear of harm to themselves or to a patient, and nurse faculty can demonstrate techniques and critical scenarios in a way that may not be available to students or faculty in the clinical setting. However, nursing faculty are not utilizing this teaching innovation to its potential suggesting educational administrators could benefit from understanding the challenges that nurse faculty face when integrating HFS into their teaching practice. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of nurse faculty who were required to integrate HFS into their teaching practice. In this study, seventeen female nurse faculty who taught in the second year of the Saskatchewan Collaborative Bachelor of Science in Nursing (SCBScN) at Saskatchewan Polytechnic Saskatoon Campus were interviewed about their experiences integrating HFS into their teaching practice. The transcripts were analyzed using Moustakas’ (1994) modified Van Kaam method. Six themes describing the essences of the participants’ experiences were identified: striving for self-efficacy, struggling to maintain autonomy, being part of a community of practice, adopting HFS as a teaching innovation, being an advocate, and being proud. An emerging theme, being an outsider, was discussed. An interpretation and synthesis of the results resulted in a conceptualization of the experience. This research has implications for integrating a new teaching innovation. The nurse faculty required support and resources, psychological safety while learning the new innovation, ongoing communication about the innovation, acknowledgement of their accomplishments, and a sense of pride in the institution. Recommendations for nurse faculty include becoming prepared, finding a mentor, participating in discussion forums, and advocating for time needed to learn. Recommendations for educational administrators include ensuring ongoing education and support, involving nurse faculty in discussions about the innovation from the beginning, providing a psychologically safe environment for learning, providing time to learn away from other teaching responsibilities, and fostering pride through acknowledgement of accomplishments.