Featured ArticleThinking Like a Nurse: Using Video Simulation to Rehearse for Professional Practice

BackgroundProfessional nurses are called upon to make increasingly high-stake decisions, calling for critical thinking and effective problem solving skills. Nurse educators are compelled to facilitate the transference of classroom knowledge to clinical practice to strengthen the student's transition to the professional role. The purpose of this article is to describe the effectiveness of using video simulation to develop critical thinking skills, leadership and quality and safety competencies in nursing students.MethodsA pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was used with a convenience sample of 54 nursing students enrolled in a senior leadership course. The Creighton Simulation Evaluation Instrument TM was used to evaluate assessment, communication, critical thinking, and technical skills.ResultsStatistically significant differences between mean pretest and posttest scores (p = .0001) were found.ConclusionsProject findings support the use of video scenarios for the application of theoretical knowledge to clinical situations, promotion of critical thinking skills and development of quality, safety and leadership competencies.