The Role of High-Fidelity Simulation in Nursing Education in Saudi Arabia

Background: Nursing education needs to prepare competent nurses to provide high-quality care to clients, as a nurse's role has expanded and requires more professional abilities and self-sufficiency. However, nursing schools face significant challenges due to a shortage of educators, limited clinical areas or healthcare facilities, and an increasing number of students. To improve students' learning outcomes and enhance their self-confidence, satisfaction level, communication skills, and critical thinking abilities, nursing schools use high-fidelity simulation to allow students to practice procedures before implementing them in real life.This study examines undergraduate nursing students' perceptions of high-fidelity simulation-based learning, evaluates its impact on student confidence and satisfaction, and investigates the interrelationships between these elements and demographic characteristics after training nurse educators on high-fidelity simulation. Methods: The nurse educators received a pre-training program in high-fidelity simulation techniques. A self-administered questionnaire was used to evaluate students' perceptions of satisfaction and self-confidence after completing simulation-based practice. The data collected from 250 nursing students were analyzed using a descriptive analysis and Pearson correlation test. Findings: The mean score of students' self-confidence after experiencing a High-fidelity simulation is 3.08 out of 4. Additionally, the overall satisfaction acquired is 3.06 out of 4. Satisfaction correlates significantly with academic levels (p < 0.05). Undergraduate nursing students positively perceive the use of simulation in clinical education, as it enhances their satisfaction with learning and increases self-confidence. It is essential to offer ongoing professional development opportunities for nursing faculty to improve their abilities in using High-fidelity simulation effectively in teaching and assessment. Keywords: High­fidelity, Simulation, Satisfaction, Self­confidence, Nursing students