Chapel Hill Review

University of North Carolina School of Nursing students are conducting simulations to prepare themselves for the mass immunization of patients when a COVID-19 vaccine becomes available.

Many undergraduate nursing students haven't seen each other in person since UNC moved to remote learning in March before attending the mass immunization simulation, which was set up by clinical assistant professor Susana Barroso and clinical instructor Erin Stanley, UNC said in an Oct. 5 release. The simulation was to prepare future nurses for precisely the kind of scenario they may face when a coronavirus vaccine is released. For the exercise, students based their decisions on pharmaceutical details of a recent flu vaccine in place of a vaccine for COVID-19.

The mock "patients" received various patient profiles to act out, while the "nurses" posted up at one of five stations screened them for illness, allergies and other health complications that could exempt someone from receiving the vaccine, UNC said in the release.

Patients acted out a variety of situations: some were afraid of needles, some had a strange rash, and some were very concerned with the contents of the vaccine, possibly after reading misinformation on the internet or because they have an allergy, UNC said in the release. Each station played a part and questions were repeated to ensure that essential details didn't get missed.

"The goal of a point of dispensation focusing on mass immunization is to get as many people vaccinated while maintaining the health and integrity of everyone else," Barroso said in the release. "[The] simulation allows students to put theory into practice. They have an opportunity to connect content from different courses and care for 'patients' in a safe environment. The goal is to build muscle memory so that when they are confronted with a similar experience in the real world, they will have [the] experience to draw from."