The Influence of Structured Debriefing on Clinical Judgment in Associate Degree Nursing Students

Abstract

The objective of this quantitative, comparative research was to determine the influence of structured post-simulation debriefing on clinical judgment in Associate Degree Nursing students who participated in a high-fidelity simulation exercise in comparison with students who received traditional debriefing. The measurement tool was the Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR). Thirty-two students were invited and only 27 responded. Students participated in a code sepsis simulation that lasted 30 minutes followed by structured debriefing. The LCJR score sheet captured the scores. A mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance was conducted to analyze the scores. There was a substantial main effect for debriefing type for noticing; Wilks’ Lambda = .22, F (1, 25) = 86.4, p = .00, ηp2 = .776, interpreting; Wilks’ Lambda = .46, F (1, 25) = 29.1, p = .00, ηp2 = .538, and responding; Wilks’ Lambda = .58, F (1, 25) = 18.2, p = .00, ηp2 =.422. Also, on reflecting; Wilks’ Lambda = .31, F (1, 25) = 29.1, p = .00, ηp2 = .695. The estimated mean between groups were different in those receiving traditional debriefing showing higher scores in those receiving structured debriefing. For noticing; M = 7.0 and M = 9.5, interpreting; M = 4.6 and M = 6.5, responding; M = 9.2 and M = 13.7 and for reflecting; M = 5.0 and M = 6.5 (Pallant, 2016). The research findings have supported and reinforced the importance of structured debriefing after simulation exercises.