By: Victoria Brazil (@SocraticEM)
Not all healthcare simulation activities are effective, and some might even be harmful. ‘Quality’ in healthcare simulation is difficult to define, but leaders in the field have rightly sought to provide guidance for simulation programs and practitioners. The latest contribution to this conversation is the publication of the ASPiH Standards – 2023: guiding simulation-based practice in health and care. The abstract promises “a common framework within educational and healthcare sectors, bolstering quality assurance for simulation providers, regulators, professional bodies and commissioners.” (1)
This work joins that of other professional associations around the world seeking to ensure high quality simulation. The (US based) Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) overseas a comprehensive accreditation process, in which simulation programs may apply for ‘core’ accreditation plus any or all of accreditation in specific areas – Assessment, Research, Teaching/ Education, Systems Integration and Fellowship. Their standards are available here. INACSL (International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning) also has Standards of Best Practice, “designed to advance the science of simulation, share best practices, and provide evidence-based guidelines for the practice and development of a comprehensive standard of practice.” These include standards relating to professional development, pre-briefing, scenario design, debriefing, operations, IPE and evaluation.
The ASPiH Standards recognise that simulation practice encompasses a diverse array of purposes and methods, making quality assurance challenging. There are 15 standards, grouped under a series of headings: Core values, Faculty, Resource Management and Activity (further broken down into preparation and planning, facilitation, and evaluation and research.) The article elaborates on the standards themselves and describes the process for their development.
For the everyday simulation practitioner or program leader? These standards ( and those of other associations) are useful to review periodically to remind us of the issues to consider in our own programs. There is always a philosophical debate about rigid accreditation processes supporting quality or stifling innovation. However, I think this latest publication from the ASPiH team gives us a succinct overview of important quality issues. For a further dive into this paper, we discussed it on the June episode of Simulcast.
Happy reading (and simulating!)
vb
References
- Diaz-Navarro, C., Laws-Chapman, C., Moneypenny, M., & Purva, M. (2024). The ASPiH Standards – 2023: guiding simulation-based practice in health and care International Journal of Healthcare Simulation. from 10.54531/nyvm5886.
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