Experiences of Older Adult Volunteers and Nursing Simulation Coordinators in a Graduate-Level Primary Care Telehealth Simulation: Benefits, Facilitators, and Volunteer Management Considerations

The COVID-19 pandemic has created both the necessity and opportunity to test and refine virtual volunteering strategies. Through a unique partnership between an AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program and a school of nursing, a telehealth virtual simulation training was developed for family nurse practitioner students featuring older volunteers as standardized patients. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the two nursing simulation coordinators and three volunteers after the telehealth simulation exercise to identify principles of successful virtual volunteer engagement in this unique training environment. Three major themes emerged: the benefits of virtual volunteering; technology as both a facilitating factor and challenge; and volunteer management considerations.