Home health simulation: Helping students meet the changing healthcare needs

Background/Objective: Nursing education has traditionally educated students in an acute care setting. However, recent trends in health care delivery models have moved the care of clients to a variety of out-patient settings. For the role of the nurse educator to transform, the curriculum must be able to expand beyond just the hospital-based focus to also include a community-based focus. To meet this demand, the College of Nursing faculty created a geriatric home care simulation to enhance the students’ experiences of providing care beyond the hospital setting to this growing population.Methods: A gap analysis of current simulations imbedded within the curricula identified the need for a community-based simulation and a geriatric home care simulation was chosen. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing Essentials of Baccalaureate Education and Recommended Baccalaureate Competencies and Curricular Guidelines for the Nursing Care of Older Adults were used as the framework for the analysis.Results: This simulation was designed as an interactive, low-stakes experience since many students lacked the opportunity to experience this unique clinical care setting. This article describes the development of the simulation, specific content objectives and outcomes, summary of the reactions of the students and faculty, as well as revisions and closing reactions.Conclusions: Nursing education has historically focused on acute care and now nursing students must be able to care for clients in a variety of out-patient settings, while focusing on the management of chronic diseases, promoting wellness and disease prevention. The future of nursing education will continue to require that faculty members explore innovative solutions to meet the educational needs of students, while balancing the health care needs of various populations and our changing health care delivery systems.