Simulated 10 Minute Clinical Rotation: Strategy to Connect Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Competencies to Clinical Examinations

As the transition to the new population, adult/gerontology primary care is made; faculty will be challenged to design innovative, yet cost effective means of determining competency in nurse practitioner students. A new strategy initiated at the University was to design short case scenarios of common conditions that present in primary care, yet may not be experienced by all students before graduation. A review of aggregate electronic log student data of a recent graduating class revealed deficits in clinical conditions, diverse patient populations, medication categories, and procedures that students had not yet experienced. Student self-analysis of clinical data confirmed prior to the beginning of the final semester revealed their desire to gain more experience in certain clinical situations and with diverse populations. Faculty planned a simulated clinical rotation day; allowing each student to rotate through six cases in 10 minute intervals in the school’s clinical laboratory. Students entered the exam setting to find either a clinical chart with diagnostic information such as an EKG strip or clinical trainer models such as a pressure ulcer simulator or ear model. No actors were involved in our simulations to reduce the cost, nor were high fidelity simulators included in the case design. Each student then addressed the case and recorded his/her findings in the chart. Students were permitted to use clinical references for assistance; however the students were to complete any written documentation for the case within 10 minutes. Following the conclusion of the rotation, students graded their performance. A debriefing session with a faculty member revealed that students appreciated the challenged to be timely in their clinical decision making and concise yet accurate in their documentation. Faculty mapped specific Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Competencies (2010) to each of the simulated cases. Examples of cases with corresponding Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Competencies (2010) will be presented.