Postgraduate Critical Care Nursing Students’ Experiences of Simulation Working With the Same Simulated Participant: A Qualitative Evaluation

• The integration of simulation into nursing curricula has supported to bridge the gap between nursing theory and frontline practice among undergraduate nursing students. • This paper provides a comprehensive understanding of postgraduate nursing students’ experiences of working with a simulated participant for an academic year and explores the impact of this learning approach on clinical practice. • This paper exposes areas for improvement in simulation-based education and the mechanisms that drive postgraduate student learning. The integration of simulation into nursing curricula has supported to bridge the nursing theory-practice gap. While the effectiveness of this approach has been established among undergraduate students, a comprehensive understanding of postgraduate nursing students’ experiences of this learning approach is limited. This study aims to explore postgraduate nursing students’ experiences of working with a simulated participant. A qualitative descriptive study using an open-ended questionnaire was used. Thematic analysis using an inductive approach analyzed the data. Two themes are presented under the headings: 1) Considerations for enhancing the student experience; and 2) Back to basics: the core mechanism driving learning in simulation-based learning. The findings emphasize the importance of enhancing psychological safety, and recognizing student learning preferences when planning simulation activities. The results also uncover the patient voice and peer learning as mechanisms encouraging greater knowledge acquisition and engagement. By exposing areas for improvement in simulation-based education and the mechanisms that drive postgraduate student learning, this research supports the improved design of simulation activities, further bridging the nursing theory-practice gap.