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Nursing students taken to boot camp in innovative educational strategy

19 October 2021 | Story André Damons | Photo Charl Devenish

Dr Annali Fichardt and Dr Champion Nyoni — Dr Champion Nyoni and Dr Annali Fichardt, together with Prof Yvonne Botma (not on the picture), from the School of Nursing at the University of the Free State (UFS) came in second for their research paper on this innovative educational strategy at the recent Faculty of Health Sciences’ Faculty Research Forum.

When South Africa went into hard lockdown due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the School of Nursing at the University of the Free State (UFS) adopted the conventional boot camp as an innovative way to continue learning and teaching clinical skills for its students.

School of Nursing leadership adopting an innovative educational strategy

The COVID-19 pandemic, specifically the hard lockdown of 2020, challenged the leadership of the School of Nursing to adopt innovative educational strategies to continue learning and teaching, especially for undergraduate nursing students. Adapting theory classes to the online space appeared easier due to the various enabling modalities in the university such as Blackboard, but the same could not be said about learning clinical skills. It is near impossible to learn clinical skills at home. The School of Nursing had to devise ways to facilitate learning of clinical skills in campus during the pandemic. Underpinned by the theory of deliberate practice, they used the boot camp as an innovative educational strategy to continue the learning and teaching of clinical skills.

Dr Champion Nyoni, Dr Annali Fichardt and Prof Yvonne Botma, who did research on this innovative educational strategy, came in second place at the recent Faculty of Health Sciences’ Faculty Research Forum. They also won the Kerneels Nel medal for best educational research paper in 2020.

Manuscript already accepted

The manuscript about their research has already been accepted by The African Journal of Health Professions Education and will be published next year.

“Deliberate practice is understood as a type of purposeful and systematic learning of skills requiring focused attention and is conducted to improve performance. Boot camps are synonymous with conventional training camps, such as used in the military, where specific skills are learnt, and the School of Nursing adopted the practice for this particular situation,” wrote the researchers in the manuscript.

According to them, the boot camps had the dual aim of developing foundational clinical skills for undergraduate nursing students, including sessions missed during the higher levels of lockdown, and preparing them for the ‘new’ workplace environment.

Educational institutions were compelled to adapt their education strategies during the pandemic and the innovation of the use of boot camps as a strategy for learning and teaching clinical skills is an example of what the School of Nursing applied immediately after the hard lockdown.

How the boot camps worked

Each student year group was allocated a week at the simulation laboratory. Each year group was then split into smaller groups to attend their boot camp on specific days of the week. The module outcomes determined the nature and number of clinical skills to be taught per camp.

All the students received a video recording of the clinical skills and associated learning material prior to the boot camp to prepare for the session. On the day of the camp, the group was further split into smaller manageable groups, which were stationed in smaller venues of the simulation laboratory with a preceptor.

Equipment and materials related to the clinical skills for the day were made available in all the venues. A central venue hosted the leading session facilitator, who provided foundational information about the clinical skill before a demonstration while being live-streamed to the other smaller venues. Students in smaller venues watched the leading facilitator via live streaming after which they had opportunities for clarification from their preceptor. All the students in the small groups then demonstrated the taught skills to the preceptor who immediately provided feedback.

This intervention commenced after the hard lockdown and continued for the whole of the year 2020.

Outcomes of the strategy

The boot camps appeared to have influenced the learning and teaching of clinical skills positively, but the strategy is an emergency solution only in response to COVID-19 and is not regarded as suitable for long-term educational purposes. Students’ clinical outcomes appear to have improved compared to previous years and they appreciated the efforts taken by their educators in facilitating the learning of clinical skills and re-integrating them into the clinical environment.

“We always encourage our students to be innovative in their own practice, – the boot camps were an exceptional demonstration of practising what we preach,” says Dr Nyoni.

The infrastructure, the educators, and the leadership of the School of Nursing appeared to be enablers for the effective influence of this strategy. The boot camps were located at the state-of-the-art simulation facilities at the school that have multiple venues and facilities for live streaming. Teamwork among the educators in each year group drove the process through reflecting on their own practice.

News Archive

UFS Communication and Brand Management receives two prestigious international awards

2015-07-07

Lelanie de Wet, Lacea Loader and Leonie Bolleurs

The Department of Communication and Brand Management at the University of the Free State (UFS) received two of the six Gold Quill Awards – that were awarded to South African companies and institutions - at the International Association of Business Communicator’s (IABC) Excellence Gala ceremony in San Francisco, US on 15 June 2015.

The awards ceremony formed part of the 2015 IABC World Conference, which took place from 14-17 June 2015. The department received a Gold Quill Excellence Award for its social media campaign, UFS #FaceOfFacebook and a Gold Quill Merit Award for the B Safe Take Action campaign.

From the 15 countries that entered, a total of 120 Gold Quill Excellence awards and 189 Gold Quill Merit awards were awarded. Other South African award winners included Barclays Africa Group Limited, Mediclinic and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT).

This is the second year in a row that the UFS has been recognised by the IABC for its communication projects. In 2014, the department was awarded the Jake Wittmer Research Award for a Stakeholder Perception Audit conducted in February 2014. The audit was considered – by the IABC - as one of the best breakthrough strategies used by a university to measure the perceptions of its stakeholders.This made the UFS the first tertiary institution in Africa to receive the research award. The stakeholder perception audit also received an Africa Gold Quill in 2014.

"Being recognised by a global association such as the IABC for the second time, is a great honour and I am very proud of what my colleagues have achieved by entering the two campaigns. Winning the awards is a true indication of what can be done when a team of expert communicators is committed towards engaging their target audiences with campaigns that speak of quality and innovation. The fact that the UFS is one of only two tertiary education institutions in the country to receive these prestigious awards, makes it even more special," said Lacea Loader, Director: Communication and Brand Management at the UFS.

IABC World and Africa conferences 2015

The IABC is a global membership association with a network of 12 000 members in more than 80 countries, representing many of the Global Fortune 500 companies. It serves professionals in the field of business communication, bringing together the profession’s collective disciplines.

With the theme: Changing landscape: Informing the future, the 2015 world conference was attended by over 1 200 delegates from across the world. Delegates were offered an opportunity for learning, discovering, and connecting. Loader also made a presentation entitled ‘Award-winning measurement endorses sound reputation management strategy’ at the world conference.

The department will also be receiving two Africa Gold Quill Awards from the Africa chapter of the IABC for the same campaigns on 30 July 2015 in Johannesburg.

UFS #FaceOfFacebook Campaign

The university received a Gold Quill Excellence Award for its social media campaign, UFS #FaceOfFacebook. This initiative originated in the university’s commitment to its Human Project, which sets the standard for good behaviour and care.

Lelanie de Wet, Manager: Social Media and Website Content and project leader of UFS #FaceOfFacebook, said the project was born from the need to communicate with students. Thus a virtual friend, #FaceOfFacebook, was created. “Yearly auditions are being held to choose the new face representing the UFS on Facebook. Short video clips of the #FaceOfFacebook – whether it is attending events or communicating important messages - are posted on the UFS Facebook page. The successful candidate holds the title #FaceOfFacebook for 12 months.

“When I look at a campaign such as #FaceOfFacebook, from the time it took its first tentative steps in 2013, and see how it inspired staff and students alike, my heart swells with pride. Often you can see the impact you have made only in retrospect. The ripples you send into the world will inevitably create waves,” she said.

B Safe Take Action Campaign

The B Safe Take Action campaign of the university received a Gold Quill Merit award from the IABC.

The campaign was activated in September 2013. “It targeted on- and off-campus students and staff, aiming to create social ownership of personal safety, and to raise awareness of the safety measures put in place by the university,” said Leonie Bolleurs, Manager: Internal Communication and project manager of the campaign.

The campaign looked at a number of safety aspects, focusing not only on crime but also on being safe from road accidents and stress/burnout.

It is the second time this year that the BSafe campaign has been recognised for its innovative strategy. Earlier this year it received a PRISM Award (Gold) from the Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA). The annual PRISM Awards are about recognising and celebrating great public relations campaigns.

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