The use of virtual simulation or virtual patients in nursing education
An integrative literature review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14528/snr.2022.56.1.3136Keywords:
clinical decisions, students, nursing, simulated learning environment, critical thinkingAbstract
Introduction: The Covid-19 epidemic has significantly compromised the practical training of nursing students. While in nursing, the use of simulation is not new, virtual simulation or virtual patients represent relatively new educational modalities. The aim of this literature review was to examine the most recent empirical evidence on the efficacy or effectiveness of using virtual simulation or virtual patients in nursing education around the world.
Methods: Scholarly articles published between 2016 and 2021 in the CINAHL, MEDLINE, ERIC and COBIB bibliographic databases were reviewed. The review included articles which focused on student nurses using virtual simulation or virtual patients as a method of learning rather than as a way of assessing students' knowledge acquired through a different learning method. A thematic analysis was used to synthesise the results.
Results: Twelve studies were included in the review, most of which were conducted in developed countries. The results showed that the use of virtual simulation or virtual patients has a positive effect on the acquisition of cognitive and affective knowledge, practical implementation of interventions, assessment of self- efficacy and competence, and student satisfaction.
Discussion and conclusion: In situations where clinical training is not possible for nursing students, the use of virtual simulation or virtual patients can replace the clinical setting for the purposes of practising clinical decisions, but it cannot replace the clinical education and experience students obtain when working with actual patients.
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