Professional competence development through interprofessional simulation-based learning assists perioperative nurses in postgraduation acute clinical practice situations: A qualitative study

Aims and objectives: To explore recently graduated perioperative nurses' experiences of interprofessional simulation-based learning during postgraduate education and investigate whether and how this learning approach contributed to the development of their professional competence in meeting acute clinical situations. Background: Perioperative nursing requires specialised education that offers professional development to ensure high-quality nursing care and patient safety in acute situations. Interprofessional simulation-based learning exposes students to acute situations in a safe environment without the risk of harming the patient, and it prepares postgraduate nursing students for clinical practice. Despite extensive research regarding simulation-based learning, there is a lack of knowledge on what impact such training has on perioperative nursing students after graduation. Design: An explorative qualitative design was used, and this study is reported in accordance with the COREQ guidelines. Method: Between March 2019–November 2020, 16 perioperative nurses participated in semi-structured individual interviews three to five months after their graduation from five different educational institutions. During their postgraduate education, they had participated in interprofessional simulation-based learning that included acute clinical situations. A phenomenological hermeneutical analysis was applied to the data involving three steps: naïve reading, structural analysis and comprehensive understanding. Results: During the naïve reading, three themes emerged: competence in handling acute situations, competence in interprofessional teamwork and professional identity development. Conclusion: Interprofessional simulation-based learning in perioperative nursing education developed relevant and important competence, including professional identity development, among perioperative nursing students. As recent graduates, their professional competence was transferred to clinical practice and developed further. Relevance to clinical practice: Findings indicate that interprofessional simulation-based learning is an important educational approach in perioperative nursing education. It is essential to use effective learning approaches to develop competencies that are transferable to clinical practice and improve perioperative nurses' performance as recent graduates. Therefore, interprofessional simulation-based learning should be implemented into perioperative nursing education.