Standardized Patient Simulation for a Graduate Nursing Program

Clinical placement for nurse practitioner (NP) students is difficult due to an increase in demand for clinical sites and qualified preceptors, and the nursing faculty shortage. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing supports the use of simulation with standardized patients as an adjunct to traditional clinical placement for NPs. In this article, we describe an innovative standardized patient simulation experience implemented in a family NP master's of science program. The purposes of this experience were to provide alternative clinical opportunities and formative feedback for NP students and to identify gaps in students' diagnostic reasoning. Lessons learned through this experience are included.