Appraisal of Quantitative Study

Study question

The Effects of Simulation on Nursing Students’ Critical Thinking Scores article was written by Sullivan-Mann, Perron, & Fellner and published in 2009. The study’s aim was to determine the outcomes of using simulation as one of the strategies of teaching critical thinking for nursing students. The researchers also wanted to establish if critical thinking of nursing students improved with exposure to many simulation scenarios.  The question is relevant to the study because today simulation is being applied greatly in nursing education and it was necessary for the researchers to determine whether it is really valuable or not.

Research design used

The research design used by the researchers was the mixed model research design. The study combines both qualitative and quantitative methods in order to answer the research question. This kind of research design is important in discovering how people act in a specific way. The design was used by the researchers to determine the effects of simulation in the experimental group as compared to control groups of participants.

The validity of the results

The results of the study are valid because the journal is peer-reviewed. It was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Hatton Institute for Research and Education. The study also utilized nursing theories and external sources from previous studies on simulation. The outcome showed that the application of simulation teaching strategy improved critical thinking of the participants therefore this kind of teaching strategy can be applied in other nursing colleges. The participants of the study were also students with diverse backgrounds and ages therefore applicable to many contexts. The participants were also randomly assigned to experimental and controlled groups and the experimental group showed an increase in critical thinking as compared to controlled groups.

Random sampling strategy was used in the study. 53 students from the Nursing II course in Midwestern US College in 2007 were sampled the study is also externally valid because the study showed that the application of simulation in the experimental groups of students at Midwestern College showed an increase in critical thinking as compared to the controlled group. Simulation was proven to be important in enhancing the quality of education for nurses.  Application of simulation in other colleges for nursing will yield the same results and the study was not biased.

The researchers clearly indicated how they accessed and gathered the information from their participants. The researchers showed how the participants were sampled. They also indicated the materials, apparatus, and procedures they used in conducting the study. These clear data procedures make it easy to replicate the study.  The population sample is also valid because it is representative of what the research is to measure. The study shows that the findings from the study can be applied not only to the sampled population but to all nursing students. Nursing educators should use a simulation strategy in teaching.

Analytic strategies employed in the study were the use of mean and standard deviation to analyze the results and find patterns.  Simulation was administered as a pre-test and post-test for both controlled and experimental groups to determine the effect of simulation on the participants and the findings showed that the experimental group showed an increased level in critical thinking. The sampled participants were students from diverse age groups and backgrounds,

The conclusion of the study was that simulation has great value in nursing education. It enhances critical thinking skills such as inductive reasoning, deductive reasoning, emotional intelligence, good communication, and analysis skills. Educators of nursing should emphasize the importance of simulation teaching strategy. The elements of the study are logically consistent because they are all aligned. There is consistency in the title, research question and the purpose of the study which increases the transparency of the study. The conclusion from the study is valid because it can be applied in other contexts.

The statistical measures that were used in the study are mean and standard deviation for the Health Science Reasoning Test (HSRT) composite and subscale scores. Before conducting the effects of HSRT, an independent sample t-test was first conducted and from the findings, there were no differences between control and experimental groups. This shows that the participants of the study started at the same level.  The test was repeated with the application of simulation on experimental group and in the post-test, it was found that the group answered more questions correctly unlike in the pretest (F1, 26.0 = 6.74, P <05) as compared to control group (P> 05).  This shows that the application of simulation increased the critical thinking of the experimental group.

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Applicability to Patients

The study patients were similar to my clinical setting therefore I can apply the outcomes with confidence. Simulation contributes to patient safety because it allows healthcare providers to improve the quality of patient care without putting the patient’s lives at risk.  A simulation model for example in the hospital radiology department will be used to analyze the impact of new x-ray machines on the quality of healthcare service. 

Important outcomes were considered in the study.  The researchers mentioned that nursing educators should apply simulation learning strategy because it produced desired results for example competence and collaborative skills in the participants. The intervention of simulation benefits is worth the potential harm and costs because it improves quality patient care.  The results of the study are applied in hospitals, therefore, ensuring patient safety.

Implications for Clinical Practice

I will use this evidence in my clinical practice because simulation training has been proven to be effective in preventing medical errors in healthcare institutions. The use of simulation teaching strategy will contribute to quality patient care. Simulation creates a good environment in which healthcare providers can experiment on new clinical procedures and increase their individual professional skills. Some of the simulation applications comprise of artificial patients with some disease symptoms and response to the simulated treatment. This enhances the clinical skills for healthcare providers without putting the patient lives at risk.

References

Sullivan-Mann, J., Perron, C. A., & Fellner, A. N. (2009). The Effects of Simulation on Nursing Students’ Critical Thinking Scores: A Quantitative Study. Newborn and Infant Nursing Reviews, 9(2), 111-116. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.nainr.2009.03.006