Experienced Based Co Design: Nursing Preceptorship Educational Programme

Abstract

Background Patients play a central role in nursing preceptorship relationships, a professional educational relationship between a staff nurse and student nurse that is grounded in providing patient care. Yet the patient experiences and perspectives are largely uncaptured in the literature or represented in current preceptorship education programmes. Furthermore, the lack of student, staff nurse & patient involvement in the design of preceptorship education programmes has been noted. Objective To use a codesign process to develop an innovative educational programme for developing interpersonal and communication skills among nurses who act as preceptors. We sought to a) clarify experiences and events from all three members involved in a preceptorship relationship (student nurse, preceptor, and patient (SPP)) in order to develop a shared understanding of nursing preceptorship relationships and b) identify the key informational and educational needs recommended by SPP for the educational programme. Methods Using the principles and the iterative process of Experienced Based Co Design (EBCD), data was collected from qualitative interviews and used to inform a series of codesign workshops and the co-production of the new educational programme. Results Twenty-six individuals, including undergraduate student nurses, staff nurses, patients, and a team of nursing, educational and educational technologist experts, contributed to developing a Preceptorship educational programme that consists of three core elements 1) online reusable learning objects, 2) role play simulations and 3) a virtual reality storytelling simulated experience. Conclusions The EBCD process ensured that the educational programme was developed to meet SPP viewpoints associated with fostering positive interpersonal relationships in a nursing preceptorship. EBCD is a valuable framework for developing human-centred educational resources that combine experiential knowledge (experiences) and scientific knowledge (literature-based knowledge). It facilitated the identification and the development of IP & C skills training required within a nursing preceptorship relationship, creating an authentic and memorable learning programme. The structure of EBCD harnesses SPP involvement throughout the research and development process, ensuring transparency and continuity of message, scope, and outcomes.

Key tips to providing a psychologically safe learning environment in the clinical setting

“…This paper outlines guidelines for preceptors to provide a psychologically safe learning environment for their students (Table 2). These guidelines were recently incorporated into an innovative preceptorship education programme accredited by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI), focusing on developing preceptors' interpersonal and communication skills relevant to student teaching and learning [32]. Implementing these guidelines could help preceptors establish a standardised approach to providing a psychologically safe learning environment for their students.…”

“…In the following section, the authors will describe key recommendations to fostering psychological safety for students in clinical learning environments based on Edmondson's [8,10] and Clarke's [12] seminal work in psychological safety, the available literature on psychological safety in clinical education, international professional guidance documents [29,32,33] and the author's expertise in the field of preceptorship. Table 2 below presents guidelines for creating a psychologically safe learning environment in the context of a nursing preceptorship under four categories 1) before meeting students, 2)first meeting students, 3) continued relationship with students and 4) general rules.…”