Nurses at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital are using clinical simulation to learn new ways of helping patients who become sicker in hospital.

 Special training events are being held in the Clinical Skills building in the grounds of Hull Royal Infirmary to help nurses who may encounter deterioration in their patients.

 The Nurse Training and Simulation sessions allow clinical staff to practice five different scenarios they may face during their shifts, such as a patient developing the potentially deadly condition sepsis, using mannequins in a mock hospital ward in the training suite.

Donna Gotts

Donna Gotts, Sepsis Specialist Nurse at NHS Humber Health Partnership, said: “Any unwell patient needs to be recognised quickly, no matter what the cause is.

 “We’re putting a massive emphasis on taking observations because they’re our first sign and red flag warning of a potential problem.

 “Observations can be seen as a mundane task given to junior staff but the reality is it’s a clinical assessment. It’s not just about doing it properly, it’s about understanding and interpreting what the readings mean, say, when there’s a change in respiratory rate.”

 As well as refresher training covering observations and how they highlight deterioration in patients, the training sessions also cover recent changes to sepsis guidance, showing staff warning signs of sepsis, how to voice concerns and the steps to take to escalate to the medical team.

  “It’s about giving people time to step back and think about patient care while giving them the confidence to know what to do, how to act and when to escalate to medical staff,” Donna said.

 “These training sessions are an open, honest and safe environment where no question is a silly question, mistakes can be made and shared and we all learn from each other.”

Kirsty Stephenson

Kirsty Stephenson, Nursing Simulation Fellow, has designed the training programme and has run sessions with registered nurses since November, with a view to extending the training to other staff groups.

 She said: “We’ve created different scenarios based on what a registered nurse may encounter, how to recognise signs of deterioration in patients and how to respond.

 “These training sessions enable staff to learn in safe environments, helping them understand why we do the basics like observations.

“It’s getting them to not just do the observations but to think deeper about what might be going on with their patient.”