The Effect of Simulation Teaching Method on Vaginal Examination Practice Skills and Self-Confidence Development in Labor in Midwifery Students

Two skills, abdominal palpation and vaginal examination, are used to clinically monitor the progress of labor. Vaginal examination is the most accepted method to measure the progress of labor.Vaginal examination, which is routinely applied in the evaluation of labor progress, is an important part of midwifery care. However, it is reported that the accuracy level of vaginal examination for new students is low. This essential skill is a learned tactile/tactile skill that requires consistency to properly manage women in labor. Therefore, it cannot be learned through observation alone; In order to acquire this skill, students need to perform a large number of vaginal examinations in women who have given birth. The usual/classic training technique for teaching vaginal examination is that the midwifery student performs a vaginal examination on the woman in labor under the supervision of an experienced obstetrician, and then the experienced obstetrician repeats this examination to determine the accuracy of the trainee student's assessment. Simulation-based learning improves the understanding, retention and active use of knowledge and skills, reduces the student's pre-application anxiety, and increases self-confidence. It is seen that simulation, which has been widely used in medical education in recent years, is also used as a teaching method in the development of practice skills of midwifery students.There are several studies in the literature evaluating the effect of simulation training on students' vaginal examination skills and self-confidence.In a study conducted to evaluate the benefits of simulation training in teaching obstetric vaginal examination techniques to medical students, it was found that the vaginal examination accuracy of students who received simulation training was significantly higher than those who did not receive simulation training. In this study, it was concluded that simulation training helped inexperienced students improve their vaginal examination skills before performing such procedures on real patients, interns who performed simulated examination showed significantly higher accuracy in vaginal examination evaluations than the control group. However, according to the available data, no study has been found that examines the effect of simulation training on vaginal examination skills in midwifery students.

This study was planned to evaluate the effect of simulation teaching method on the ability to apply vaginal examination in labor and self-confidence in midwifery students.

Type of Study: The study was planned as a randomized controlled trial.

Place and Time of the Research: The research was carried out at Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University Faculty of Health Sciences, Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University Health Research and Application Hospital and Tokat Provincial Health Directorate Tokat State Hospital between 10.02.2020-17.05.2020.

Population and Sample of the Research: