Abstract:

Simulations shift the focus of educational activities from instructor-led teaching to student-centered learning. By exposing students to real-life health-related scenarios in a safe environment, simulations give students the opportunity to actively learn and assess their abilities to translate knowledge and theoretical concepts to the healthcare setting prior to entering the workforce. Simulations are well established in pre-licensure clinical programs and more recently, have been integrated into graduate-level health management programs to develop critical competencies and skills relevant to health executives. While the evidence of the benefits to students is plenteous, simulations in undergraduate health management programs are scant. The Healthcare Policy and Management Bachelor of Science Program at the NYC College of Technology (City Tech), City University of New York introduced a telehealth simulation activity in spring 2024. The simulation focused on care coordination within a complex and at times fragmented healthcare system. Competencies from the field of patient navigation were utilized to guide the development of learning outcomes. Through a simulated telehealth visit, students were exposed to a simulated client (i.e., patient) with various concerns, including navigating health services as well as disease and self-care management. The goal was to help students understand the intricacies and challenges of coordinating care and to apply knowledge gained from health service redesign case studies to an experiential activity. Information from pre-surveys, post-surveys, a word cloud, and self-reflections was collected to assess student engagement along with baseline and post-simulation knowledge and confidence. Students expressed feeling nervous yet finding the simulation to be highly informative. This work will present a case analysis of the effectiveness of a simulation for undergraduate health management students. Moreover, it will provide a process for developing virtual simulations to serve as an example for other instructors interested in augmenting their curricula with student-centered learning activities through live simulations.

Keywords:

Virtual Simulation, Student-Centered Activities, Telehealth Simulation, Health Management, Health Sciences, Pedagogical Innovations.