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On April 11, 15 of BWH’s newly licensed nurses participated in hands-on clinical bedside emergency training and classroom instruction as part of BWH’s Newly Licensed Nurse Program.
The training, called “Recognizing and Responding to Bedside Emergencies,” is part of a series offered to assist newly licensed nurses who have been practicing at BWH for less than one year. The series began about three years ago, under the leadership of Ellen Bergeron, MSN, RN, program director of the Newly Licensed Nurse Program. Designed to incorporate classroom and applied learning, the program’s curriculum helps new nurses augment their skills and knowledge to deliver excellent patient care.
“It is so important for our new nurses to be able to hone their skills and technologies in a safe environment,” said Nursing Program Director Dorothy Bradley, MSN, RN, director of the Nursing Simulation Center. “The day includes classroom learning, skill stations, simulations and debriefings following the simulation experiences.”
During the training, new nurses were organized in three groups. While one group participated in the scenario in the Simulation Room, the other nurses were in the classroom down the hall, observing the participants on a monitor as they assessed and cared for a mock patient as the emergency unfolded.
“As the nurses in the classroom observe the scenario on a screen, we ask them questions like, ‘What would you be doing if you were in the patient room right now?’” said Bradley. “We encourage them to think about the family members, who also may be in the room, and how to interact with them. During each of the simulations, one nurse played the role of a family member.”
Added Bergeron: “Debriefing after completion of the scenario is the heart and soul of the simulation experience. This is the time to learn what participants were thinking and the reasoning behind their clinical decision-making.”