The need for skilled nurses is ongoing, not just in the life-and-death situations of critical care, but also for an aging population with chronic illnesses. Making the right decisions for a patient's care takes time, experience and a great deal of study. Dean Pamela Jeffries of the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing does research around innovative instruction that uses technology and simulations to give student nurses a way to begin learning how to make those hard decisions without putting patients at risk.
Jeffries was one of the researchers who conducted the first multi-site study of simulation in nursing education in 2014, a landmark study sponsored by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. This work shaped policy in the use of clinical education across all 50 states, influencing boards of nursing to count simulation hours along with direct care patient hours in clinical pre-licensure education. The resulting NLN/Jeffries Simulation Theory (National League of Nursing, 2015, 2021) has advanced simulation research across the profession and around the world. Her numerous publications, nine books and presentations in 26 countries attest to her expertise.
"I saw the gaps in the transition to practice with students lacking experience, problem-solving and clinical reasoning abilities," Jeffries says. "I believed simulations could provide safer, less-high-stakes training before placing students in clinical practice."
One component of Jeffries' simulation theory is the notion of making the scenario as realistic as possible. Real actors, known as standardized patients, and/or high-fidelity mannequins with heartbeats and other bodily responses are used. Faculty are also educated in how to facilitate the immersion learning experience using simulations. For the most effective simulation-based education, Jeffries says faculty need to set the learning objectives and structure the debriefing.
Before the NCSBN study, Jeffries sometimes had to defend her belief that simulation training was effective in preparing nurses. "There were many naysayers until the NCSBN study provided evidence of the effectiveness of clinical simulations in replacing traditional clinical hours for nursing students," she says.
Jeffries' current research focuses on augmented AI and ways to leverage AI to advance clinical simulation. She recently was invited by a chief nursing officer to collaborate on a journal article examining AI and the use of simulations in clinical workflow.
"I expect to do more scholarship along those lines, investigating the integration of AI use intersecting with simulation and tailoring student learning to create a more personalized learning experience," she says.
