Nursing Students’ Clinical Judgment and Performance in Simulation of Recognizing and Responding of the Deterioriating Patient ; a retrospective mixed-methods

Abstract

Purpose : This retrospective mixed-methods study aimed to explore key considerations for designing effective simulated education in nursing, focusing specifically on the recognition and response to deteriorating patients.Methods : Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed to assess the clinical judgment and performance of the nursing students. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data related to prior knowledge, simulation satisfaction, clinical judgment, and nursing performance during deteriorating patient simulations. Qualitative content analysis was conducted for the reflective journal entries of the participants.Results : Quantitative analysis showed that most participants demonstrated a “being skillful” level of clinical judgment (33.1%) in effective response. At the beginner level, clinical judgment varied across effective noticing(39.7-82.8%), effective interpretating(77.6-82.8%), effective responding(3.4-86.2%), and effective reflecting(90.0-95.4%). Nursing performance in assessing patient respiration or SpO2 after request from a physician ranged from 46.6-48.3%. Qualitative analysis indicated that 48.5% of the participants anticipated a deteriorating condition and initiated appropriate actions, while 70% noticed patient unresponsiveness for the first time.Conclusion : To design an effective simulation program for identifying and addressing deteriorating patient care, a framework for observation and interpretation is essential, along with regular simulated training. It is important to design and assess simulation programs and to conduct thorough interviews with nursing students to gain insight into their clinical decision-making.