On Monday October 29th, students in Family Nursing 2701 participated in a simulation along with nursing faculty. The simulation occurred in a community setting (i.e. the home of an older adult who had experienced a family member misusing her finances, who is considering moving to an assisted living complex as she has dementia). The family is present to help the client with the decision making process. Faculty members played the role of the family, and the students were members of the interprofessional team who came to visit the home and collaborate with the family to identify their most pressing concerns in order to provide them with appropriate support and services.

The objectives of this simulation activity were to provide students with the opportunity to practice the following family nursing skills:

1) participation in therapeutic conversation
2) application of relational family nursing skills
3) exploring the experience of the family
4) reflecting on the experience of the family and personal relational skills
5) discussing the benefits of an interprofessional team approach towards caring for the older adult and their family
6) to utilize teaching opportunities to enhance the functioning of an older adult and their family.

Students and staff participated in a pre-briefing prior to the simulation to learn their roles and de-briefed as a whole group about the experience.

Thank you to all nursing instructors who offered their time to make this activity a success and to our students who participated with such enthusiasm to make this a great experience!

Post and photo by Sandy Alguire RN MN – Course Leader Family Nursing 2710