Project Details

Organization: Nebraska Medicine  |  Healthcare |  2018

Project Type: Curriculum  |  Module  |  Infographics

Brief Background: A new alcohol withdrawal assessment protocol was being implemented to replace an older model that research had shown provided better patient care and outcomes.

Project Goal: Communicate the important differences between the old and new protocols and design a software/process simulation that allowed learners to practice without needing to practice on a real patient. 

Primary Obstacles: Two distinct audiences, nurses and physicians, with different learning needs, motivations, and learning environments and a very short deadline with potential patient risk if not met. Though similar in function, this assessment tool required more critical thinking with a range of potential answers and interventions. There was no longer a single correct assessment answer but a scale based on symptom interpretation and critical analysis. 

Design & Development Solutions

Infographic: A required infographic highlighting the main differences between old and new protocols.

Simulation Module: The module simulated the assessment of a patient, after which the learner had to use that assessment to implement proper interventions. 

Feedback: Immediate feedback was given on each assessed point. If the learner made too many mistakes, the module directed the learner to stop, review more education, and start over. 

Important Discoveries: The course was a success for both audiences. Nurses told anecdotal stories of retaking the simulation multiple times in order to get everything right because even though John Smith was a fake patient, they felt emotionally compelled to get the best possible outcome for him. 

Later, due to its success, when other new processes were implemented, project owners and subject matter experts requested a simulation module just like this one.