Mock trial as a simulation strategy allowing undergraduate nursing students to experience evidence-based practice: A scoping-review

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this scoping review was to determine the underlying design of simulations that help undergraduate nursing students acquire evidence-based practice (EBP) experiences. METHOD: The JBI methodology was used for this review. The inclusion criteria were studies conducted in academic, clinical, or virtual settings that examined simulation programs designed to facilitate the acquisition of EBP by undergraduate nursing students. A comprehensive search was performed on Jan 3, 2022, using the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE; PubMed), the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), and the Excerpta Medica database (EMBASE). Grey literature was not included. Publication year was limited to 2020 and later. There was no language restriction. Data were extracted using a tool developed by the reviewers and based on the National League for Nursing Jeffries Simulation Theory. RESULT: A total of 12,931 articles were found, and after duplicate articles and articles deemed ineligible based on the title and abstract (12,914 articles), 17 published papers were examined. The full texts of these studies were reviewed for eligibility, and one study was selected for the present scoping review. The selected study examined a mock trial designed to allow undergraduate nursing students to experience the ethical decision-making based on a diversity of evidence. The program reported in the study consisted of a prebriefing—simulation (mock)—debriefing structure with verified positive effects on EBP education. CONCLUSION: A mock trial is a useful educational strategy for allowing undergraduate nursing students to experience EBP, but a creative method should be found that can modify the mock trial for practical operation as the designing the program demands high levels of human and material resources. REGISTRATION: OSF Registries, https://osf.io/gdtyu, We updated OSF registry data for documenting important protocol amendments.