The nursing discipline lacks a consensus on a best practice method for debriefing students following simulation-based training. A recognized, standardized method does not exist and various methods are utilized within the domain. The similarities between aviation and healthcare are well documented. Training members of both disciplines require standardization and methods of best practice. The aviation industry through the Federal Aviation Administration has found Learner Centered Grading (LCG) to be a successful educational format. The utilization of the LCG Debriefing method in simulation-based training is the standardized debriefing format for a technologically dynamic industry. The aim of this research was to examine the LCG debriefing approach and determine the added value of the approach using a scenario-specific behavioral checklist as an instrument for the nursing faculty and the learner to assess the learner’s performance. A repeated measures was conducted to evaluate whether there were differences between the control and treatment groups across the pre and post-test. The test statistic demonstrated no statistical significance between the control and treatment groups. Results of Pearson’s correlations showed that self-efficacy was not significantly correlated with change in performance by debriefing method. A number of factors contribute to this finding, one of which is the small sample size. The small sample size led to insufficient power to detect an effect if one did exist. Other factors included time allotted for data gathering, simulation space availability and participants’ prior exposure to the control debriefing method. This study served as a pilot for future research. Implications for the next study include extending the time allotted for gathering data to allow for a larger sample size, utilizing the Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE) designees to function as facilitators as well as evaluators and to design the study to evaluate performance immediately after the debriefing session and once again at a different interval of time. A second simulation session conducted one week after the initial participation would be beneficial to evaluate if knowledge acquisition occurred.

The health care field has become increasingly more complex, requiring new nurses to be prepared upon graduation to respond to a variety of complex situations. Unfortunately, many graduates from associate degree nursing (ADN) programs are not able to think critically upon entering the work force. This presents a major problem for the nurse and for the employer. The purpose of the study, therefore, was to gain a deeper understanding of the graduates' perceptions of their ability to critically think during their first year of clinical practice, and if they believed their program prepared them to be critical thinkers. The key research questions focused on how the novice nurses reconciled their performance on a critical thinking, online assessment, the Health Sciences Reasoning Test (HSRT), with their perception of their critical thinking skills, and if they felt prepared, during their first year of clinical practice, to critically think. The conceptual framework applied was Bloom's Taxonomy and Tanner's clinical judgment model. A purposeful sampling of 7 novice nurses from 3 ADN programs was chosen. After completing the HSRT, audio-taped phone interviews were conducted. The data indicated that the participants felt unprepared to respond to emergent patient situations, thus undermining their self-worth and clinical competency. The participants agreed there was a need for a critical thinking course in ADN curriculum. A project was created for a 9-week critical thinking course, incorporating theory, clinical practice, and simulation exercises. Social change is expected to occur when student nurses are able to critically think upon graduation, resulting in positive patient outcomes, both of which will benefit patients, their families, and their communities.