Nursing Students’ Perception of Clinical Simulation in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia

Simulation in nursing has advantages for performance, psychomotor skills, and clinical learning. In addition, simulation has been reported to show a positive impact, which may guide nurse instructors with regard to the conditions beyond which patient simulation is more practical than the traditional learning style.

The study aimed to evaluate the perceptions of nursing students studying at the College for Health Sciences in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia.

A quantitative study design was used in this study. A descriptive survey was conducted using a convenience sample of nursing students at the College for Health Sciences in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire consisted of 10 questions presented on a four-point Likert scale.

A total of 103 nursing students participated in the study with a response rate of 85%. The majority (70%) were Bachelor program students, while 30% were Bridging program students. Most respondents’ age ranged between 18–22 (55%). The respondents' level of the program that they were enrolled in while taking the survey was as follows: first year (17%), second year (20%), third year (28%), and fourth year (35%). Students demonstrated the strongest agreement with the statement “simulation helped in better understanding the concepts in the clinical setting” with a mean of 3.0. However, the lowest mean score of 2.74 was for the statement “simulation was realistic and students experienced nervousness during their simulation sessions”.

The results conclude that simulations help students better understand concepts in clinical settings, provide them with valuable learning experiences, and help them stimulate critical thinking abilities.