Effect of Implementing Simulation Education on Health Care Worker Comfort With Nasopharyngeal Swabbing for COVID‐19

OBJECTIVE: To determine if rapid implementation of simulation training for the nasopharyngeal swab procedure can increase provider confidence regarding procedure competency. METHODS: A simulation training exercise was designed as a departmental initiative to improve competency performing nasopharyngeal swabs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-one health care workers attended teaching sessions led by the Department of Otorhinolaryngology on proper nasopharyngeal swab technique. After a brief lecture, participants practiced their swab technique using a high-fidelity airway simulation model. Pre- and postintervention self-evaluations were measured via standardized clinical competency questionnaires on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from "No knowledge, unable to perform" up to "Highly knowledgeable and confident, independent." This reflects a large effect size with a Glass's delta value of 1.3. DISCUSSION: Lecture coupled with simulation-based teaching can significantly improve health care workers' confidence in performing nasopharyngeal swabs. Proper training for frontline workers performing swabs for COVID-19 is essential to improving testing accuracy and can be achieved in a simple and timely manner. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: To meet the testing needs of the growing pandemic, many health care workers who are unfamiliar with nasopharyngeal swabs have been asked to perform this test. Simulation-based teaching sessions may improve health care workers' confidence and help prevent false-negative results. This intervention is easily reproducible in any setting where frequent nasopharyngeal swab testing occurs. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE/STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.