The Effect of Simulation on Nurses’ Confidence with Providing Post-Fetal Death Support to Bereaved Parents

Introduction: Fetal death (FD) affects one in 10 women worldwide and is associated with negative sequelae such as complicated grief. The negative effects of FD may potentially be mitigated through provision of bereavement support (BS) by trained healthcare workers. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of simulation on registered nurses’ (RN) confidence in providing BS following FD. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study conducted within a South Florida community hospital. Nurses were recruited via email/flyers. Participation in the study entailed attending a post-FD simulation session, and completion of the Perinatal Bereavement Care Confidence Scale (PBCCS) immediately before and after the simulation session. The PBCCS has four subscales: Bereavement Support Knowledge (BSK), Bereavement Support Skills (BSS), Self-Awareness (SA), and Organizational Support (OS). Results: The results showed statistically significant increases in score averages between all subscales [BSK (t =-5.9, p < .001), BSS (t = -7.8, p < .001], SA (t = -5.3, p < .001), OS (t = -4.0, p < .001)]. and PBCCS total (t = -7.7, p < .001)]. A significant difference in post-OS scores was between full-time (FT), part-time (PT), and per diem (PD) employees [F (2,35) = 3.7, p = .03]. Discussion: The results of this study suggest simulation is an effective strategy to increase nurses’ and confidence to provide post-FD support to bereaved parents. However, the results also suggest that PT nurses perceive less OS than FT and PD nurses. Despite these promising results, more research is needed to explore possible reasons behind PT nurses’ lower OS scores, and to examine the effect of BS simulation training on parents’ perceptions of BS support.