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Objective: This qualitative study provides up-to-date knowledge about today’s nursing students’ views and experiences of factors that can increase or decrease the attractiveness of nursing and presents students’ ideas for improving the nursing profession.Methods: Data were collected from 168 nursing students at the University of Applied Sciences in Finland through an online survey in March 2022. Inductive content analysis was used to analyze the data.Results: According to the students, the attractiveness of nursing is decreased because nursing is not adequately appreciated, the resources and salary do not match the workload, the working atmosphere can be detrimental to psychological well-being, and there is frequently little support from nurse leaders. Factors that could increase the profession’s attractiveness involve advancing nursing’s role at the level of individuals, organizations, and society; meaningfulness of nursing duties, influencing one’s work; better working conditions and well-being at work; development of nursing leadership; and work and career advancement. Students suggest promoting marketing and the appreciation of nursing, developing leadership and the theoretical and practical competence of supervisors, promoting nurses’ daily coping and well-being at work, and raising salaries.Conclusions: The status and image of nursing must be addressed at the level of individuals, organizations, and society, both nationally and internationally. Nurses themselves must appreciate their profession and feel that they have a possibility to advance their careers.

This qualitative study describes out-of-hospital emergency care providers’ experiences and views of situational awareness (SA) in the identification of abuse, including observations that led them to suspect abuse. Nine prehospital emergency care providers and three community paramedics were interviewed based on preselected themes. The data was analyzed using inductive content analysis. According to the results, emergency care providers’ self-defined situational awareness consisted of cognitive competence (logical reasoning and detection of cause-effect relationships); emotional competence (empathy and emotional intelligence); social competence (interaction skills and assessment of family dynamics), and experiential knowledge. Indicators of abuse involved the overall situation; the client’s physical condition; the client’s mental condition; the context and circumstances, and the logic in client reports. Although situational awareness develops with work experience, it is advisable for educators to include a wide range of cognitive, emotional and social skills in the initial and continuing education of emergency care professionals. These skills can be practiced using multi-professional simulation-based education.

Background: Nursing students need opportunities for authentic learning in contexts that strongly resemble real-life clinical settings.Objective: This qualitative study describes final year nursing students’ experiences of simulation authenticity and presents development needs proposed by the students. The study aimed at producing knowledge that can be used by educators and technology specialists to develop simulation pedagogy for acute nursing.Methods: Eleven final-year nursing students specializing in acute nursing (intensive care and in- and out-of-hospital emergency care) responded to a questionnaire with four open questions in December 2019. Inductive content analysis was used to analyze the data.Results: The students stressed the importance of their own preparations and living into the nursing role with proper briefing from an expert teacher, supported by a realistic representation of the setting using real equipment, actors, visualization and other multisensory cues.Conclusions: Students’ subjective experience of authenticity depends on many factors; preparation, awareness of objectives, support from the facilitator and the level of environmental fidelity. Simulations, which reach a reasonable degree of authenticity in the students’ experience, can be considered an effective form of authentic learning.

Objective: To examine how simulation coaching affects emotional intelligence (EI) skills and situational awareness in social and healthcare staff of small and medium-sized enterprises.Methods: This qualitative study involved 36 mental health and child protection professionals in five enterprises. Following simulation-based coaching interventions centered around the development of EI and situational awareness, the participants wrote essays on their development. Inductive content analysis was used to analyze the body of material.Results: The participants found simulation coaching an effective method for learning EI, situational awareness and teamwork skills. They also considered the scenarios and shared reflections to be a form of work supervision.Conclusions: Simulation coaching offers potential for the development of EI and situational awareness in mental health and child protection professionals.

Background and objective: This paper presents a sub-study of an ongoing research and development project (August 1, 2017-December 31, 2019), whose aim has been to use simulation-based coaching to meet social and healthcare staff’s self-reported learning needs in 20 small and medium-sized enterprises in Finland. Two regional educational institutions are responsible for the management of the project. The study aim was to examine the development of self-rated professional competence and expertise of social and healthcare staff, following a simulation coaching project.Methods: An electronic questionnaire was used to collect information about participants’ self-rated expertise, first in November 2017 and again in May 2019 following the simulation-based coaching intervention. IBM SPSS for Windows 25 was used to analyse the data.Results: The respondents appreciated simulation coaching as an effective way of developing expertise and the continuous learning skills of professionals. In this project, coaching was considered to be especially suitable for theoretical and practical management of acute situations; for keeping up with change in society; for anticipating development needs, and for promoting the attractiveness and competitiveness of the company where they worked.Conclusions: The simulation coaching concept, which involves action-based and concrete ways of developing theoretical and practical competence, is well suited for social and healthcare professionals undertaking continuing education. Using the companies’ own facilities facilitates participation and application of new knowledge and skills.

Objective: To examine how health and social welfare professionals in small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) rated their theoretical, practical, and interaction competencies following simulation-based coaching, and to collect feedback for the coaching intervention.Methods: This quantitative survey is part of a wider research and development project conducted in Finland in the years 2017-2019 with assistance from the European Social Fund and carried out in collaboration between two educational institutions. Respondents were 107 nurses and other health and social care professionals in 20 SMEs. Data collection took place using an online questionnaire in May 2019. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS for Windows 25.Results: The great majority of the participants were satisfied with the coaching intervention. Respondents rated their theoretical, practical, and interaction competencies as good. They also felt confident about their skills in learning, problem-solving, and action-based learning. Among the most salient learning needs were the use of digital tools, social media, and electronic learning environments, and the need to practice remote counseling.Conclusions: The results indicate a need to provide continuing education on information and communication technology for health and social welfare professionals in small and medium-sized companies.

Objective: The study is a descriptive survey based on quantitative and qualitative data. Its purpose is to describe leaders’ self-assessed competence and learning needs in small and medium-sized health and social care enterprises as part of a larger research and development project in Finland. The information produced will be used in planning a simulation-based coaching intervention. The project partners are a health technology enterprise and two educational institutions.Methods: Data were collected in late 2017 from 23 leaders of 20 enterprises using an internet-based questionnaire. The quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS for Windows and the qualitative data using inductive content analysis.Results: The leaders felt confident about their ability to organize day-to-day activities, but reported learning needs related to interaction and entrepreneurship. Training was required in supporting staff in challenging situations, in understanding group dynamics and in developing dialogic interaction and emotional intelligence. The leaders were interested in learning how to market their services and improve the competitiveness of their enterprise with help of digitalization and networking, and how to prepare for the reform of health and social services. Most leaders were involved in practical care work and reported a need to update their clinical skills.Conclusions: Increasing self-management contents and fostering an entrepreneurial attitude in nursing and social work curricula may provide one answer to the learning needs reported in this study. Simulation-based education can provide an effective learning environment for both students and professionals in health and social services.

Purpose: The paper describes staff’s self-rated theoretical, practical and interaction competence in 20 social and healthcare companies. The study draws from a research and development project run jointly by two educational institutions and a health technology development center. The results can be used to develop the content of a multiprofessional simulation coaching intervention.Data and methods: Data were collected in the autumn of 2017 using an online survey software. The quantitative data were analyzed using the SPSS for Windows version 23 and the qualitative data using inductive content analysis. The response rate was 96% (n = 125). This article presents the quantitative results.Results: Respondents found that they were competent in interaction, in identifying their clients’ needs, in attending to client safety and in supporting clients’ psychosocial and physical function. Their ratings were lower for issues pertaining to severe disability, for encountering aggressive behavior and for some aspects of digitalization.Conclusions: The most important development needs involved making better use of digital tools and remote counseling, enhancing information technology competence and learning to encounter aggressive behavior.

Objective: The study describes learning needs of social and healthcare staff in small and middle-sized enterprises, which participate in a simulation-based coaching project. The study aims at producing knowledge that can be used to develop the content of multiprofessional simulation-based coaching.Methods: Data were collected through an online survey using a questionnaire with quantitative and qualitative items. The qualitative data were analyzed using inductive content analysis and the statistical data using SPSS for Windows version 23.Results: The professional development needs of social and healthcare staff in small and middle-sized enterprises emerged in the following areas: the respondent’s professional knowledge base; the respondent’s professional skill base; multiprofessional collaboration; development of the business, and networking between enterprises. The staff recognized their need to develop both personally in the area of key competences, and collaboratively in the organization.Conclusions: The results will be used when planning multiprofessional simulation-based coaching for acute, recurrent and infrequent situations in small and middle-sized social and healthcare enterprises. Simulation pedagogy can also be used to prepare for various client and family counseling situations and to practice communication and interaction for interdisciplinary teamwork.

Objective: To describe how nurse students specializing in acute nursing care and practical nurse students specializing in emergency care experienced a joint simulation education program and the usefulness of simulation education in general.Methods: Data were collected using a questionnaire from nurse and practical nurse students (N = 21), who had together undertaken a multiprofessional simulation-based course. Quantitative data was analyzed using statistical methods, whereas inductive content analysis was conducted to analyze qualitative data.Results: Respondents found simulation education useful for the development of theoretical and practical skills and interaction skills. Shared competence was appreciated. It consisted of sharing one’s knowledge, learning from others, learning together and learning teamwork skills. Respondents regarded multiprofessional simulation education as an effective method in learning how to deal with acute, recurrent or infrequent situations. Simulated learning also provided respondents with explicit experience of multiprofessional collaboration in emergency care and facilitated their learning of collegiality with help of constructive feedback.Conclusions: Simulation education can promote nursing students’ technical and non-technical skills and help students form a clearer perception of multiprofessional collaboration. Careful planning and timing of joint simulated learning sessions is recommended.

Objective: This follow-up study is part of a larger study on emergency medical services. Its purpose was to describe emergency care providers’ perceptions of their work, its challenges and their clinical competence. The study aimed at producing knowledge of the perceived influence of an educational intervention, to be used in developing emergency care providers’ further and updating education.Methods: Data were collected from staff working in out-of-hospital emergency care of a hospital district in Finland using a questionnaire developed for this purpose. The results were analyzed statistically using SPSS for Windows 24.Results: Over 90% of the respondents found that their work was interesting and provided sufficient challenges. The majority were also interested in continuous professional development. After the educational intervention, respondents found the work somewhat more challenging and slightly more strenuous both physically and mentally compared to the first survey. Respondents more commonly reported that new capacities were required at work and they rated their practical skills lower than in the first survey. However, work in a multiprofessional environment was found less challenging. Over 70% of the respondents planned to have further education in the near future. They rated their clinical skills as good, but slightly lower compared to the first survey.Conclusions: The results regarding work, its challenges and self-rated clinical competence remained the same or were somewhat poorer after the educational intervention. The results help improve the education to meet the needs of emergency staff.

Objective: The purpose of the research was to describe nursing and medical staff’s knowledge of simulated learning and their experiences of the usefulness of simulation education in one hospital district in Finland. The research aimed at producing user-oriented knowledge to be used in the development of multiprofessional simulation pedagogical continuing education. The study is part of a larger research project, whose purpose is to build up a multiprofessional simulated learning environment for a network of partners. They involve a university of applied sciences, a vocational education center, a health technology development center and a hospital district.Methods: Data were collected using aWeb-based survey tool between December 1, 2016 and January 13, 2017. The questionnaire contained both quantitative (n = 24) and qualitative (n = 3) items. This article deals with quantitative data only. Data was analyzed using SPSS Statistics for Windows 23. The response rate was 28% (n = 125).Results: Both nursing and medical staff found that simulation education had been useful for the development of their theoretical and practical competence. Some statistically significant differences were discovered between various age and professional groups.Conclusions: As a conclusion, nursing and medical staff in this hospital district need more information about simulation education and simulated learning environments. The knowledge produced in this study can be used in planning multiprofessional simulation pedagogical continuing education. Simulation pedagogy can be especially useful when practicing teamwork and interaction in acute, recurring and infrequent care situations.