Acquiring, Applying and Retaining Knowledge Through Debriefing for Meaningful Learning

Acquiring, Retaining and Applying Knowledge Through Use of Debriefing for Meaningful Learning (DML). Background: Developing competence in nursing care is a critical expectation of nursing students. Knowledge acquisition, application and retention are the primary building blocks of competence. DML debriefing offers an opportunity to ensure that students master critical components of nursing they might not otherwise learn and to remove epistemological roadblocks to knowledge development. Methods: Eighty-two traditional prelicensure baccalaureate nursing students from a single school participated in the study. This quasi-experimental pretest, posttest study explored the impact of the use of Debriefing for Meaningful Learning compared with customary debriefing on the development of knowledge about care of the patient with a neurologic condition and knowledge retention 4 weeks later. Results: There was a significant difference in knowledge acquisition, knowledge retention, with DML compared to customary debriefing. Conclusions: These findings are significant for nurse educators using simulation to potentiate clinical competence in prelicensure students and add to the growing evidence regarding the impact of debriefing.