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Clinical simulation and training for Advanced Nursing Practices: an integrative review

Abstract

Objective

Analyze the contribution of clinical simulation use as a teaching and training strategy of advanced nursing practices.

Methods

An Integrative Review was undertaken through a search in the databases Embase, LILACS, PubMed, and e Scopus, using the descriptors and key words Advanced practice nursing AND simulation.

Results

Sixty-eight articles were identified; after the exclusion of repeated articles and studies that did not answer the guiding question, 11 articles were analyzed. The data evidenced that simulation permitted an in-depth investigation to assess the students’ performance in advanced practice nursing, concerning the approach of the patient and leadership; this method helped the student to take responsibility in decision making, to guide patient care, direct the team, Interact with the family, besides demonstrating leadership, prioiritization, delegation, collaboration and professionalism.

Conclusion

The studies analyzed evidenced that clinical simulation contributed to the teaching of advanced practice nursing, enhancing the clinical awareness and competency building for advanced clinical management, leadership and teamwork skills; most studies involved postgraduate students.

Simulation training; Simulation; Teaching; Advanced practice nursing

Resumo

Objetivo

Analisar a contribuição do uso da simulação clínica como estratégia para o ensino e treinamento das práticas avançadas de enfermagem.

Métodos

Foi realizada uma Revisão Integrativa e feito as buscas nas bases de dados Embase, LILACS, PubMed, CINAHL e Scopus, com os descritores e palavras-chaves Advanced practice nursing AND simulation.

Resultados

Foram identificados 68 artigos; após serem excluídos os duplicados e os que não respondiam à questão norteadora, foram analisados 11 artigos. Os dados evidenciaram que a simulação permitiu um exame aprofundado para avaliar o desempenho dos alunos nas práticas avançadas em relação a abordagem do paciente e liderança; este método auxiliou o aluno a assumir responsabilidade nas tomadas de decisões, a conduzir os cuidados com o paciente, a direcionar a equipe, interagir com a família, além de demonstrar liderança, priorização, delegação, colaboração e profissionalismo.

Conclusão

Os trabalhos analisados evidenciaram que a simulação clínica contribuiu para o ensino das práticas avançadas de enfermagem aumentando a consciência clínica e o desenvolvimento de competências para manejo clínico avançado, habilidades de liderança e de trabalho em equipe; a maioria dos trabalhos foram realizados com pós-graduandos.

Treinamento por simulação, Simulação; Ensino; Prática avançada de enfermagem

Resumen

Objetivo

Analizar la contribución del uso de simulación clínica como estrategia de enseñanza y capacitación en prácticas avanzadas de enfermería.

Métodos

Se realizó una revisión integrativa con búsquedas en las bases Embase, LILACS, PubMed, CINAHL y Scopus, con los descriptores y palabras clave Advanced practice nursing AND Simulation.

Resultados

Se identificaron 68 artículos; luego de excluirse los duplicados y los que no respondían a la pregunta orientadora, fueron analizados 11 artículos. Los datos evidenciaron que la simulación permitió un examen profundizado para evaluar el desempeño de los alumnos en las prácticas avanzadas respecto al abordaje del paciente y el liderazgo; este método ayudó al alumno a asumir la responsabilidad en la toma de decisiones, a encargarse de la atención del paciente, a dirigir al equipo, interactuar con la familia, además de demostrar liderazgo, priorización, delegación, colaboración y profesionalismo.

Conclusión

Los trabajos analizados evidenciaron que la simulación clínica contribuyó a la enseñanza de las prácticas avanzadas de enfermería, aumentando la consciencia clínica y el desarrollo de competencias para manejo clínico avanzado, habilidades de liderazgo y de trabajo en equipo. La mayor parte de los trabajos fue realizada con alumnos de posgrado.

Entrenamiento simulado; Simulación; Enseñanza; Enfermería de práctica avanzada; Revisión

Introduction

Advanced Practice Nursing (APN) constitutes a look at the professional practice that is expanding, both in terms of the number of people and areas of practice. The concept of ANP arose in the early twentieth century in the United States, in response to a series of sociopolitical events that generated new demands on nursing professionals.(11. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses Joint Dialogue Group. Consensus Model for APRN Regulation: Licensure. Accreditation, Certification & Education; 2008.,22. Mantzoukas S, Watkinson S. Review of advanced nursing practice: the international literature and developing the generic features. J Clin Nurs. 2007 Jan;16(1):28–37.)

Similarly, experience in the development of APN in different countries indicates that its implementation occurred in response to a need to reduce costs, improve access to health care, and reduce the waiting time of health service users.(33. Sheer B, Wong FK. The development of advanced nursing practice globally. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2008;40(3):204–11.) The incorporation of APN in these countries required drastic changes in the legislation and regulation of professional practice though, as well as transformations of scenarios for professional action and changes in the characteristics of nurses’ training.(44. Miranda Neto MV, Rewa T, Leonello VM, Oliveira MA. Advanced practice nursing: a possibility for Primary Health Care? Rev Bras Enferm. 2018;71 suppl 1:716–21.)

Currently, the way APN is carried out throughout the world varies among the countries and their respective legislations, and places such as the United States and Canada present this well-founded practice. In Brazil, on the other hand, the agreement for its implementation and creation of strategies to train nurses for APN started only in 2016.(33. Sheer B, Wong FK. The development of advanced nursing practice globally. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2008;40(3):204–11.,55. Delamaire ML, Lafortune G. Nurses in Advanced Roles: A Description and Evaluation of Experiences in 12 Developed Countries. 2010 OECD Health Working Papers;54, OECD Publishing, Paris.http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1787/5kmbrcfms5g7-en.Barrio-Linares, 2014
http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.178...

6. ICN. NP and AP Roles - Nurse Practitioner. Advanced practice nursing network. 2017. Available from:https://international.aanp.org/Practice/APNRoles
https://international.aanp.org/Practice/...
-77. Conselho Federal de Enfermagem (COFEn). Enfermagem pactua implementa?o de Pr?ticas Avan?adas no Brasil. 2016.)

Because of this varied state of development and the range of practices involved, defining the term “Advanced Practice Nursing” is a complex task.(33. Sheer B, Wong FK. The development of advanced nursing practice globally. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2008;40(3):204–11.,55. Delamaire ML, Lafortune G. Nurses in Advanced Roles: A Description and Evaluation of Experiences in 12 Developed Countries. 2010 OECD Health Working Papers;54, OECD Publishing, Paris.http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1787/5kmbrcfms5g7-en.Barrio-Linares, 2014
http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.178...
) The different definitions rest on the considerations of the International Council of Nursing (ICN), in particular as regards the peculiarities of each context.(55. Delamaire ML, Lafortune G. Nurses in Advanced Roles: A Description and Evaluation of Experiences in 12 Developed Countries. 2010 OECD Health Working Papers;54, OECD Publishing, Paris.http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1787/5kmbrcfms5g7-en.Barrio-Linares, 2014
http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.178...
)

According to this Council, the concept of APN involves a specialized knowledge base, the gaining of skills such as critical thinking and the ability to make complex decisions and technical skills. In addition, nurses are recommended to obtain a master’s degree in order to be able to exercise APN.(66. ICN. NP and AP Roles - Nurse Practitioner. Advanced practice nursing network. 2017. Available from:https://international.aanp.org/Practice/APNRoles
https://international.aanp.org/Practice/...
). The attributes of this concept involve clinical expertise, leadership, autonomy and role development, the latter recognizing and presenting both the extension and expansion of the nurse’s functions.(88. Dowling M, Beauchesne M, Farrelly F, Murphy K. Advanced practice nursing: a concept analysis. Int J Nurs Pract. 2013 Apr;19(2):131–40.)

The contributions of APN are well documented and internationally acknowledged, the benefits being focused on increasing the quality of care provided to health service users, expanding the access of users to health resources and coverage, cost reduction, strengthening of nursing work, obtaining good outcomes from nurses’ activities, qualification of health promotion practices, disease prevention and rehabilitation, in addition to being associated with high satisfaction levels of the users these professionals cared for.(44. Miranda Neto MV, Rewa T, Leonello VM, Oliveira MA. Advanced practice nursing: a possibility for Primary Health Care? Rev Bras Enferm. 2018;71 suppl 1:716–21.,99. Bryant-Lukosius D, Martin-Misener R. ICN Policy Brief. Advanced Practice Nursing: an essential component of country level human resources for health. ICN [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2018 Apr 16]. Available from:http://www.icn.ch/images/stories/documents/pillars/sew/HRH/ICN_Policy_Brief_6.pdf
http://www.icn.ch/images/stories/documen...
,1010. Kurtzman ET, Barnow BS. A comparison of nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and primary care physicians’ patterns of practice and quality of care in health centers. Med Care. 2017 ;55(6):615–22.) In addition, APN has the potential to contribute significantly in the provision of quality care to patients and families, whether in acute care or in the community.(1111. Furlong E, Smith R. Advanced nursing practice: policy, education and role development. J Clin Nurs. 2005;14(9):1059–66.)

The nature of APN, as structured by ICN, includes the following elements: integration of research, education, care practice and management; high degree of professional autonomy for independent use of care practice, case management/own case load, advanced health assessment skills, decision making and diagnostic reasoning, acknowledged advanced clinical skills, provision of consulting services to health providers, planning, implementation and evaluation of health programs and being recognized as the first point of contact for patients.(66. ICN. NP and AP Roles - Nurse Practitioner. Advanced practice nursing network. 2017. Available from:https://international.aanp.org/Practice/APNRoles
https://international.aanp.org/Practice/...
)

The results obtained with the activities developed by advanced practice nurses showed an improvement in patients’ perceived health and functional status, as well as glucose control, blood pressure and control of dyslipidemia, decreased visits to the emergency department, hospitalization and mortality rates. Also, reduction of cesarean section, episiotomy, labor analgesia and perineal lacerations and reduction of the cost of care.(1212. Newhouse RP, Stanik-Hutt J, White KM, Johantgen M, Bass EB, Zangaro G, et al. Advanced practice nurse outcomes 1990-2008: a systematic review. Nurs Econ. 2011;29(5):230–50.)

Considering the dimension of the concept of APN, the Brazilian trend to consider this model of professional nursing care and the skills required from nurses for the actual establishment of this practice, investments are crucial, especially in the training of these professionals to provide for the professionalization of advanced practice nursing.(1313. Cassiani SH, Zug KE. Promoting the advanced nursing practice role in Latin America [Internet]. Rev Bras Enferm. 2014;67(5):673–4.,1414. Zanetti ML. Advanced nursing practice: strategies for training and knowledge building. Rev Lat Am Enfermagem. 2015;23(5):779–80.)

The recommendations of the International Council of Nurses (ICN) reinforce the importance of investments in the qualification of nurses’ advanced practice training, by delimiting that professional training be obtained in postgraduation programs recognized for this function.(44. Miranda Neto MV, Rewa T, Leonello VM, Oliveira MA. Advanced practice nursing: a possibility for Primary Health Care? Rev Bras Enferm. 2018;71 suppl 1:716–21.,66. ICN. NP and AP Roles - Nurse Practitioner. Advanced practice nursing network. 2017. Available from:https://international.aanp.org/Practice/APNRoles
https://international.aanp.org/Practice/...
) As a differential of the curricula focused on APN training, the incorporation of clinical simulation stands out, in the training process as well as in the formative and summative evaluations.(1515. Jeffries PR, Beach M, Decker SI, Dlugasch L, Groom J, Settles J, et al. Multi-center development and testing of a simulation-based cardiovascular assessment curriculum for advanced practice nurses. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2011;32(5):316–22.)

Simulation can be understood as an imitation or representation of a simple or complex act or process. Clinical simulation, according to Oliveira, Prado and Kempfer,(1616. Oliveira SN, Prado ML, Kempfer SS. Use of simulations in nursing education: an integrative review. Rev Min Enferm. 2014;18(2):496–504.) “comprises strategy, technique, process and tool. To implement it, more than effective simulators are needed; their use needs to be adapted to the simulation method”. In clinical situations, the simulations can contain different goals, including education, evaluation, research and patient safety, beyond the student’s integration into the health system. Besides the intended improvement of health service efficacy and efficiency.(1717. Society for simulation in Healthcare. About Simulation [Internet]. Estados Unidos. Cited [ 2018 Jun 27]. Available from:http://www.ssih.org/About-SSH/About-Simulation
http://www.ssih.org/About-SSH/About-Simu...
)

For its application in teaching, low, medium or high-fidelity mannequins (patient simulator) can be used, people playing the patient’s role (simulated patient), virtual learning objects (educational software), mixed methods and role-play.(1616. Oliveira SN, Prado ML, Kempfer SS. Use of simulations in nursing education: an integrative review. Rev Min Enferm. 2014;18(2):496–504.)

The simulated clinical experience can offer greater support to clinical learning, guiding the simulated activities towards specific learning needs and in performance assessment.(1818. LeFlore JL, Thomas PE. Educational changes to support advanced practice nursing education. J Perinat Neonatal Nurs. 2016;30(3):187–90.) In addition, it permits the application of clinical judgment and critical thinking towards successful diagnostic and therapeutic reasoning, offers another way of teaching clinical management in primary health care programs, increases the student’s knowledge and confidence in the management of a range of health problems;(1515. Jeffries PR, Beach M, Decker SI, Dlugasch L, Groom J, Settles J, et al. Multi-center development and testing of a simulation-based cardiovascular assessment curriculum for advanced practice nurses. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2011;32(5):316–22.,1919. Garbuio DC, Oliveira ARS, Kameo SY, Melo ES, Dalri MCB, Carvalho EC. Simulação clínica em enfermagem: relato de experiência sobre a construção de um cenário. Rev Enferm UFPE. 10(8):3149-55.) its advantages characterize clinical simulation as an important tool for the teaching and training of skills related to APN. Hence, the objective in this study was to analyze the contribution of using clinical simulation as a strategy for teaching and training advanced nursing practices.

Methods

The literature review is a type of research that synthesizes results from earlier studies, and thus provides conclusions within a specific theme.(2020. Broome ME. Integrative Literature Reviews for the Development of Concepts. In: Rodgers BL, Knafl KA, editors. Concept Development in Nursing: Foundations, Techniques and Applications. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Company; 2000. p. 231–50.)

First, in line with the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI)(2121. The Joanna Briggs Institute. The Joanna Briggs Institute. Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewers’ Manual: 2014 edition. South Australia: The University of Adelaide; 2014.), for the items title description, objective, research question, search strategies, inclusion criteria, data extraction and synthesis, the protocol of this review was elaborated (Chart 1). Two researchers carried out the searches separately; then, the results were compared to minimize disagreements.

Chart 1
Integrative review protocol: use of clinical simulation in teaching and training Advanced Nursing Practices

The selection process of the studies was based on the initial reading of the titles and abstracts, studies related to the theme being fully read. When they answered the research question, they were included in the study. This process has been illustrated in figure 1.

Figure 1
Flowchart of study selection according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses – PRISMA recommendations.(2222. Moher D, Shamseer L, Clarke M, Ghersi D, Liberati A, Petticrew M, et al. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 statement. Syst Rev [Internet]. 2015 [cited 2018 Abr 15];4(1):1. Available from:https://www.bmj.com/content/349/bmj.g7647
https://www.bmj.com/content/349/bmj.g764...
)

Results

In this integrative review, 11 articles were analyzed that complied with the criteria established in the protocol; all were written by nurses and published between 2009 and 2017.

As for the articles’ indexation in the databases, seven (63.3%) are indexed in PubMed, three (27.2%) in CINAHL and one in Scopus (9.0%). In the other databases, LILACS and Embase, no articles were found that answered the review question. Concerning the country of origin, ten articles (90.9%) were developed in the United States and one in Singapore (9.1%).

About the research design of the selected articles, three (27.7%) are qualitative studies,(2323. Defenbaugh N, Chikotas NE. [The outcome of interprofessional education: Integrating communication studies into a standardized patient experience for advanced practice nursing students]. Nurse Educ Pract. 2016;16(10:176-81.

24. Kowitlawakul Y, Chow YL, Salam ZH, Ignacio J. Exploring the use of standardized patients for simulation-based learning in preparing advanced practice nurses. Nurse Educ Today. 2015;35(7):894–9.
-2525. Richardson L, Resick L, Leonardo M, Pearsall C. Undergraduate students as standardized patients to assess advanced practice nursing student competencies. Nurse Educ. 2009;34(1):12–6.) one (9.0%) is an experience report,(2626. Aronowitz T, Aronowitz S, Mardin-Small J, Kim B. Using Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) as Education in Advanced Practice Registered Nursing Education. J Prof Nurs. 2017;33(2):119–25.) two (18.1%) are pilot studies,(2727. Walton-Moss B, O’Neill S, Holland W, Hull R, Marineau L. [Advanced practice nursing students: pilot test of a simulation scenario]. Collegian 2012];19(3):171-6,2828. Kesten KS, Brown HF, Meeker MC. Assessment of APRN Student Competency Using Simulation: A Pilot Study. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2015;36(5):332–4.) one (9.0%) is a quasi-experimental study,(2929. Jeffries PR, Beach M, Decker SI, Dlugasch L, Groom J, Settles J, et al. Multi-center development and testing of a simulation-based cardiovascular assessment curriculum for advanced practice nurses. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2011;32(5):316–22.) one (9.0%) descriptive,(30) one methodological (9.0%)(3131. Benbenek M, Dierich M, Wyman J, Avery M, Juve C, Miller J. Development and Implementation of a Capstone Objective Structured Clinical Examination in Nurse Practitioner and Nurse-Midwifery Programs. Nurse Educ. 2016;41(6):288–93.) and two (18.1%) randomized and controlled clinical trials.(3232. Corbridge SJ, Robinson PF, Tiffen J, Corbridge TC. Online Learning versus Simulation for Teaching Principles of Mechanical Ventilation to Nurse Practitioner Students. Int J Nurs Educ Scholarsh. 2010;7(1):1–9.,3333. Tiffen J, Graf N, Corbridge S. Effectiveness of a Low-fidelity Simulation Experience in Building Confidence among Advanced Practice Nursing Graduate Students]. Clin Simul Nurs. 2009;5(3):113–7.)

In chart 2, a synthesis of the studies included in the review is displayed.

Chart 2
Description of studies included in the review by authors, years of publication, participants, context and study design

The highest concentration of articles (83.3%) was in nursing education journals, evidencing the importance of simulation for learning advanced practice nursing in teaching. The simulation was used to teach and evaluate the specific skills of APN nurses, using dramatic (with standardized patients) and robotic simulations (with high- and medium-fidelity simulators). The simulations were used to train and assess nurses for communication skills, specific for critical care, emergency and medical clinical situations. Of the 11 articles included, ten (90.9%) discussed the use of simulation for teaching and skills training with postgraduate nurses; only one study was focused on the training of advanced practical skills for undergraduates, which supports the definition of advanced practice nursing established by ICN. Furthermore, among the studies analyzed, the definition of APN was pointed out in only two articles (18.2%). The simulation was performed in different scenarios with clinical cases in several specialties, such as gastrointestinal and neurological, neonatal intensive care, postoperative pneumonectomy, chest pain and cardiac evaluation, mechanical ventilation and home care. As for the strategies used in the simulations, in six (54.5%) articles, actors were used in the roles of patients during the scenarios and, in five (45.45%), high-fidelity mannequins were used.

Most of the simulations were evaluated based on what the participants mentioned during the debriefing. In two studies, after the scenario, pre-established guiding questions were asked to determine the contributions of the simulation. In seven studies, the debriefing was essential to assess clinical judgment, cognitive, procedural and leadership skills. The assessment of cognitive knowledge before and after the scenario was performed in two studies, while another evaluated self-satisfaction; and another, physical examination and self-confidence. In view of this, among the studies analyzed, the contributions of simulation to APN were related to the increase of knowledge; development of cognitive, procedural and clinical judgment skills; leadership; collaboration in teamwork and communication skills. This evidences that simulation is a strategy to be used for the teaching and training of Advanced Practices in Nursing in several specialty areas.

Discussion

The articles studied highlighted clinical simulation as an effective strategy for the teaching and evaluation of APN in the past ten years. This strategy allows the individual to experience a situation similar to the practice through laboratory activities, which stimulates the use of clinical reasoning, decision making and team management.

A study conducted with postgraduate nursing students evaluated the care management competencies, revealing that the simulation allows a more in-depth examination to assess students’ performance in advanced practices in relation to patient approach and leadership; pointed out that the student was able to take responsibility in decision making and patient care, directed the team, interacted with the family and demonstrated leadership, prioritization, delegation, collaboration and professionalism.(2929. Jeffries PR, Beach M, Decker SI, Dlugasch L, Groom J, Settles J, et al. Multi-center development and testing of a simulation-based cardiovascular assessment curriculum for advanced practice nurses. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2011;32(5):316–22.)

The same happened in another study from Singapore, also involving graduate students, in the evaluation of the physiological, neurological and gastrointestinal alterations in severe patients, represented by actors; the participants affirmed that this is a very useful strategy, mainly for the development of data collection and communication skills and for preserving realism, as the actors acted similarly to the real patients.(2424. Kowitlawakul Y, Chow YL, Salam ZH, Ignacio J. Exploring the use of standardized patients for simulation-based learning in preparing advanced practice nurses. Nurse Educ Today. 2015;35(7):894–9.)

The use of actors in simulation of advanced practices has been effective, not only for the nurse acting in the scenario, but for the actors, as the learning acquired during the scene is valid. Nursing undergraduates who participated in a simulation interpreting patients reported that the experiments were successful, providing preparation for clinical practice.(2525. Richardson L, Resick L, Leonardo M, Pearsall C. Undergraduate students as standardized patients to assess advanced practice nursing student competencies. Nurse Educ. 2009;34(1):12–6.)

Simulators are often used in clinical simulations. With the purpose of developing a simulation scenario of advanced practice nursing, postgraduate students in the advanced health assessment course used SimMan®, a high-fidelity dummy, for primary care, in which the student should evaluate if the chest pain was cardiac or non-cardiac. In each simulation, three students participated and the participants reported the feeling of being in a real situation(2727. Walton-Moss B, O’Neill S, Holland W, Hull R, Marineau L. [Advanced practice nursing students: pilot test of a simulation scenario]. Collegian 2012];19(3):171-6). The use of high-fidelity simulation enhances patient safety and favors the teaching of advanced nursing practice.(3434. Hravnak M, Beach M, Tuite P. Simulator technology as a tool for education in cardiac care. J Cardiovasc Nurs. 2007;22(1):16–24.)

Another study, with the objective of evaluating technical and non-technical skills in advanced nursing practices in cancer patients, used a simulator. Participants reported being an excellent way to provide real-time scenarios.(3030. Blackburn LM, Harkless S, Garvey P. Using failure-to-rescue simulation to assess the performance of advanced practice professionals. Clin J Oncol Nurs. 2014;18(3):301–6.)

The Harvey cardiology simulator, a remote-controlled torso with cardiopulmonary sounds, was used to evaluate an educational intervention. Therefore, postgraduate students received a CD-ROM with sounds of cardiologic alterations; before going to the simulated scenario, they took two pretests evaluating cardiovascular cognitive knowledge, physical assessment skills and a self-confidence questionnaire. Two weeks after the educational intervention, each participant answered two post-tests with the same variables. The study demonstrated that this intervention increased self-confidence in the participants’ ability to perform cardiovascular assessment and clinical reasoning skills (p <0.05) as measured by the Cardiopulmonary Assessment Skills Verification instrument.(2929. Jeffries PR, Beach M, Decker SI, Dlugasch L, Groom J, Settles J, et al. Multi-center development and testing of a simulation-based cardiovascular assessment curriculum for advanced practice nurses. Nurs Educ Perspect. 2011;32(5):316–22.)

The study by Corbridge et al. (2010)(3232. Corbridge SJ, Robinson PF, Tiffen J, Corbridge TC. Online Learning versus Simulation for Teaching Principles of Mechanical Ventilation to Nurse Practitioner Students. Int J Nurs Educ Scholarsh. 2010;7(1):1–9.) compared simulation and online class in teaching students advanced nursing practices in the use of mechanical ventilation. The students in the control group attended an online class, whole those in the experimental group made use of the simulation; this group, at the end of the activity, presented greater student satisfaction (p <0.0001) with the learning method. The same result was also obtained in the study by Richardson et al. (2009),(2525. Richardson L, Resick L, Leonardo M, Pearsall C. Undergraduate students as standardized patients to assess advanced practice nursing student competencies. Nurse Educ. 2009;34(1):12–6.) when comparing simulation with distance learning, as in Tiffen, Graf, Corbridge (2009),(3333. Tiffen J, Graf N, Corbridge S. Effectiveness of a Low-fidelity Simulation Experience in Building Confidence among Advanced Practice Nursing Graduate Students]. Clin Simul Nurs. 2009;5(3):113–7.) who compared it to traditional classes.

The heterogeneity of the scenarios used in the simulations demonstrates that, despite being initially developed for primary care services, advanced practice nursing has been used in more complex scenarios, which emphasizes the expansion and extension of activities, characteristics of these practices.(88. Dowling M, Beauchesne M, Farrelly F, Murphy K. Advanced practice nursing: a concept analysis. Int J Nurs Pract. 2013 Apr;19(2):131–40.)

It is important to mention that only two of the 11 papers analyzed presented some definition of APN. This data is relevant when considering the complexity of this concept and its variations around the world. One American study points to APN as the practice in which nurses take on the direct or indirect management of patient care, which can be developed by nurse practitioners, clinical nurse practitioners, obstetric nurses.(2727. Walton-Moss B, O’Neill S, Holland W, Hull R, Marineau L. [Advanced practice nursing students: pilot test of a simulation scenario]. Collegian 2012];19(3):171-6) The other study, also North-American, does not clearly describe APN, but presents it as a deliberate practice, a teaching method based on evidenced and on the processing of information and behavioral theories for skills gaining and maintenance.(3232. Corbridge SJ, Robinson PF, Tiffen J, Corbridge TC. Online Learning versus Simulation for Teaching Principles of Mechanical Ventilation to Nurse Practitioner Students. Int J Nurs Educ Scholarsh. 2010;7(1):1–9.)

Simulation is an efficient way used in continuing education and it is important for nursing staff to remain competent in high-risk, low-frequency procedures.(3535. Stephenson E, Salih Z, Cullen DL. Advanced Practice Nursing Simulation for Neonatal Skill Competency: A Pilot Study for Successful Continuing Education. J Contin Educ Nurs. 2015;46(7):322–5.) Along with clinical simulation, the OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) tool is a viable, acceptable and valuable strategy as an assessment method to ensure that Advanced Practice Nursing students find the skills needed for teaching and evaluation, commonly used in nursing.(3131. Benbenek M, Dierich M, Wyman J, Avery M, Juve C, Miller J. Development and Implementation of a Capstone Objective Structured Clinical Examination in Nurse Practitioner and Nurse-Midwifery Programs. Nurse Educ. 2016;41(6):288–93.)

In view of the complexity of APN, simulation shows itself as an appropriate tool for teaching these skills, being dynamic, providing a real view of clinical situations within a protected and controlled environment.

This review is limited by the restricted number of studies with research designs that provide results with strong evidence, besides including studies with reduced information as to the number of participants included. The findings presented are able to answer the guiding question, to know how clinical simulation has been used for teaching and/or training of advanced nursing practices.

Conclusion

The study aimed to identify how the use of clinical simulation contributes as a strategy for teaching and training advanced nursing practices through an integrative literature review. Clinical simulation contributed to the teaching of APN with better clinical awareness, development of advanced clinical management competencies, including leadership and teamwork skills. In addition, it contributed to the filling of learning gaps, stimulated the use of scientific evidence and the development of clinical reasoning. Thus, it was evidenced that simulation is an effective teaching tool and enhances student safety during care, which in turn favors the teaching of advanced practice nursing. The precise definition of APN remains a challenge, as the concept needs to be better explored in its different activity areas, in various countries, thus contributing to the development of the practice.

Acknowledgements

To the Brazilian Scientific and Technological Development Council (CNPq; research productivity grant level 1A).

Referências

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    Advanced Practice Registered Nurses Joint Dialogue Group. Consensus Model for APRN Regulation: Licensure. Accreditation, Certification & Education; 2008.
  • 2
    Mantzoukas S, Watkinson S. Review of advanced nursing practice: the international literature and developing the generic features. J Clin Nurs. 2007 Jan;16(1):28–37.
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    Sheer B, Wong FK. The development of advanced nursing practice globally. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2008;40(3):204–11.
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    Miranda Neto MV, Rewa T, Leonello VM, Oliveira MA. Advanced practice nursing: a possibility for Primary Health Care? Rev Bras Enferm. 2018;71 suppl 1:716–21.
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    Delamaire ML, Lafortune G. Nurses in Advanced Roles: A Description and Evaluation of Experiences in 12 Developed Countries. 2010 OECD Health Working Papers;54, OECD Publishing, Paris.http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1787/5kmbrcfms5g7-en.Barrio-Linares, 2014
    » http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1787/5kmbrcfms5g7-en.Barrio-Linares
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Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    Nov-Dec 2018

History

  • Received
    9 May 2018
  • Accepted
    16 Aug 2018
Escola Paulista de Enfermagem, Universidade Federal de São Paulo R. Napoleão de Barros, 754, 04024-002 São Paulo - SP/Brasil, Tel./Fax: (55 11) 5576 4430 - São Paulo - SP - Brazil
E-mail: actapaulista@unifesp.br