From Classroom to Clinical: A Mixed methods study of the Impact of Simulation Based Education on Final Year Physiotherapy Students

Objectives: This study aimed to examine physiotherapy students reaction and learning, following Simulation Based Education (SBE) during a Cardiorespiratory module. A further aim was to see if any learning translated into clinical placement. Design: A mixed methods research design consisting of a questionnaire (Phase1) after the activity which was underpinned by the Kirkpatrick model of evaluation. This was followed by a focus groups (Phase 2) after completion of clinical placement. Participants: 92 final year physiotherapy students at a single institution were eligible to participate in the SBE session with n=81 (88%) students completing the survey, and 8 students participating across 2 focus group sessions. Results: Survey: Over 80% of students strongly agreed on a positive initial reaction to SBE. Learning yielded a 76% and above response of strongly agree in all areas except confidence. Students valued SBE as a preferred learning and teaching strategy and wanted more. They welcomed SBE as a supplement but not substitute for clinical placement. Students felt skills learned could be transferred into all areas of clinical practice,, namely communication and decision making. Conclusion: Students rated SBE positively with development of transferable non-technical skills. Reaction to SBE was high in terms of relevance, engagement and satisfaction. Self-perceived confidence, although positive, was the comparatively lowest scoring of the domains. Students advocated SBE as a supplement rather than a substitute for clinical placement preferring a hybrid approach. Contribution of the Paper: Adds to the positive body of evidence which already exists towards SBE, especially in the development of non-technical skills. Suggestions are made that SBE cant make students feel fully confident in preparation for clinical placement. While students in this study expressed that they wanted more SBE and earlier, this paper found that students would not advocate SBE replacing clinical placement.