Simulation-based behavior and communication training in the studies of midwifery science
In the project Kreißtheater, sponsored by the Foundation Innovation in University Teaching (call for proposals Freiraum 2022), students of applied midwifery science are offered simulation-based behavioral and communication training with professionally experienced actors. Curricularly embedded regular skills lab exercises, in which the students practice with each other in role plays action sequences of their professional field, are supplemented with the project Kreißtheater by simulation-based realistic scenarios. In the scenarios, the students practice both professional behavior and communication skills in cooperation with trained actors, the so-called simulation persons. The project's funding period runs from September 2022 to September 2023, during which time the teaching concept of Kreißtheater will be implemented in the Degree programme.
For the first time, this teaching concept was used in the module "Professional Communication and Interaction" in the 3rd specialisation semester, in which a weekly seminar on the field of communication takes place as theoretical preparation for the simulation exercises. On the following day, the students were able to practically apply what they had learned theoretically in simulation exercises. In the course of the project, the Kreißtheater will also be used in further modules, as the first evaluation results were very positive and show learning success as well as learning enthusiasm. Everyday and specific topics of the scenarios include: Advice on health-promoting behavior during pregnancy, communication in (interprofessional) conflict situations, guidance in different birth phases, accompaniment in miscarriage/ stillbirth, or trauma-sensitive accompaniment - to name just a few examples.
Through the use of the simulation persons and appropriate organizational preparation, which make the scenarios as realistic as possible, the students are exposed to the communicative situation, can quickly enter into the scenario and, according to their own statements, more easily fulfill their role. In this way, various communication techniques are actually tested and refined, with feedback from the actors out of role providing another supportive component to the development of communication skills. The regular simulation exercises and also examinations that begin early in the studies also provide the students with effective preparation for the practical state examinations that must be given as simulation examinations for the degree.
