International Journal of Healthcare Simulation

Background and aim:

Simulation faculty should be trained and competent [1, 2]. A strategic objective of the Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) Simulation team is to provide equitable access to a standardized simulation faculty development programme across Wales.

Methods:

A consultation process involving meetings, focussed discussions and webinars with key stakeholders, educators and clinicians from a range of professional backgrounds was carried out. The following priority areas were identified:

development of a tiered programme supporting a competency-based approach

to develop educational skills, knowledge and behaviours required to deliver high quality simulation-based education and training (SBET) in safe learning environments

to promote interprofessional SBET and offer flexible and accessible faculty training opportunities.

A tiered programme framework consisting of 3 standalone courses (essential, advanced and expert) comprising 4 blended learning modules each, was designed collaboratively and informed by the literature [2,3].

Following content mapping and creation by experts, the Essential Course was launched in October 2022. It entails 5 hours of self-directed e- learning followed by a 5-hour facilitated (virtually or face to face) session, fully funded by HEIW.

Advanced Course content is under development, due to commence in March 2024.

Results:

Thirty-eight participants completed the essential course between October 2022 and February 2023, n = 28 undertaking face to face sessions and n = 10 a virtual session.

Learners were asked to rate the usefulness of each e-learning module on a Likert scale, with 1 equating to ‘not at all’ and 5 to ‘very much’. The number of participants that evaluated each module and reported them ≥4 is as follows: ‘Introduction to simulation’ n = 35/37 (95%), ‘Human factors’ n = 24/26 (92%), ‘Designing and Facilitating Simulation’ n = 23/24 (96%) and ‘Debriefing’ n = 20/20 (100%) (see Figure 1-A34).

Figure 1-A34:

Evaluation of the essential course e-learning modules

Response rate to the evaluation of the face-to-face sessions was 24/28 (86%) and 8/10 (80%) for the virtual session. All responders 32/32 (100%) rated the face to face and virtual sessions ≥4 regarding relevance and usefulness, with 31/32 (97%) agreeing that the learning objectives were met. Common themes identified as ‘most useful’ were the ability to practise running a scenario and opportunity to practise debriefing and gain feedback.

Conclusion:

The Essential Course of the Sim FD Wales Programme has been well received and evaluated so far. Uptake has been high, with demand outstripping places available. Further evaluation is required to determine the effectiveness and impact of each course and the programme as a whole.

Ethics statement:

Authors confirm that all relevant ethical standards for research conduct and dissemination have been met. The submitting author confirms that relevant ethical approval was granted, if applicable.