Research
Dr. Aebersold guides a student during a simulation exercise with the Oculus Rift
Dr. Aebersold's current research projects focus heavily on the use of simulation methods both in the education and practice setting to improve the clinical capabilities of nurses and other health care providers to handle the situations that they will encounter. By providing realistic of experiences combined with deliberate practice she believes that the benefits will ultimately lead to improved patient experience and improved patient outcomes.
Current Projects
Academic-Community Partnership: Improving the Care of Patients who are Deaf or hard of hearing
This series of Immersive 360 Videos are aimed at helping healthcare professionals understand the unique needs of patients who are Deaf or hard of hearing.
Links to the Facilitator guide and videos can be found here.
Augmented Reality to Improve Stroke
In this study, the HoloLens (Microsoft) is used to help augment the simulation experience with a computerized mannequin. The study hopes to help train nurses to recognize and respond to stroke, in particularly those occurring on non-neurology floors. Ultimately, the goal is to see if the HoloLens is an acceptable technology for the learners to use in simulation.
Liang, C.J., Start, C., Boley, H. Kamat, V.R., Menassa, C.C., Aebersold, M. (2020) Enhancing stroke assessment simulation experience in clinical training using augmented reality, Virtual Reality, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10055-020-00475-1
Improving Nursing Students' Resilience to Bullying Behavior
Bullying is often cited as a reason for nurses in their first years of practice leaving their jobs.This ongoing research looks for ways to improve the ability of students and practices nurses manage bullying behavior in the workplace.
Aebersold, M., & Schoville, R.S. (2020) Preventing the next generation of nurses from eating their young, Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 38, 27-34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecns.2019.10.002
Schoville, R. & Aebersold, M. (2020) How Workplace Bullying and Incivility Impacts Patient Safety: A Qualitative Simulation Study Using BSN Students, Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 45, 16-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecns.2020.01.003
MOSST Chemotherapy Safety Project
Chemotherapy is a high-volume, high-risk clinical intervention that involves the care of an inter-professional team. To learn more about this project visit the MOSST website.
Patient safety is of particular concern in the high-paced, unpredictable environment of the ED. Errors stem from the cognitively-dense and operationally-complex decisions involving multiple providers, with varying experiences, who are interacting as part of a team. In addition, team members are expected to perform life-saving procedures and coordinate care with consultants. The focus of this project is to develop, pilot and rigorously evaluate a team based Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) simulation to demonstrate the feasibility of Virtual Reality (VR) for improving teamwork, communication skills, PALS guideline, and patient outcomes. The hope is that this platform, team based VR and simulation, has the potential to reduce errors and improve overall quality of care in the emergency department (ED).